Israel: The Prophetic Connection

John Tweedie - Taken Into Exile

April 13, 2026 | 27:31

Dr. John Tweedie hosts a biblically prophetic exploration of Israel, past, present and future.

#Bible #Prophecy #Prophet/Prophets #Israel #Study #BibleHistory #JewishHistory #PromiseLand #PromisesofGod

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Israel: The Prophetic Connection | John Tweedie - Taken Into Exile | April 13, 2026

Welcome to season 24 of the prophetic
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In action, a season we've called prophetic connections
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In daniel and revelation to very prophetic books.
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Now you can see my studio backdrop.
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I would far rather be filming in israel,
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But there is a war raging in israel that began
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On october the 7th, 2023.
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And while i'm going to israel myself and a couple of weeks,
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We're not prepared to risk the lives of our camera crew
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Filming outdoors when missiles are flying overhead.
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So this is a compilation
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Series of two series we did some years ago.
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Daniel and revelation one by the prophet
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Daniel, the other by the apostle john.
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And by combining the two,
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We hope to give you a panoramic future of our troubled times,
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As seen through these two men of god.
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Watch and enjoy season 24.
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Has your world ever
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Been turned upside down by events beyond your control?
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That's next on the prophetic connection.
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Soft music
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Our focus for this new season of the prophetic connection
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Is the book of daniel, a book that was written
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Some 2500 years ago.
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But it's an amazing story of the life
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Of a young man who was born in jerusalem,
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But taken from here as an exile, along with thousands
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Of other exiles, and taken, in fact, to the land of babylon.
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Daniel one opens with these words
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In the third year of the reign of jehoiakim,
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King of judah, nebuchadnezzar, king of babylon,
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Came to jerusalem and besieged it,
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And he took the spoils of war.
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He took the sacred vessels from the temple that stood
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Roughly where the golden dome is.
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He took those sacred
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Vessels back to babylon, but he took much more than that.
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He took the cream of israeli youth, the young jewish boys
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And girls, the children of promise,
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The future of israel at that time.
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And here's the instruction
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He gives in verse three of daniel one.
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Then the king instructed us, as the master of his units,
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To bring some of the children of israel
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And some of the king's descendants,
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And some of the nobles, young men in whom there was no blemish
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But good looking,
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Gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge, and quick
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To understand who had ability to serve the king's palace,
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And whom they might teach the language and literature
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Of the chaldeans.
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Another word for the babylonians.
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Well, daniel, story unfolds, but
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It's a story of prophetic dreams and visions.
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Now, why study this book today in the 21st century?
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Because the amazing thing
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About the book of daniel is that it describes events
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That happened in history, and history, proves
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Those events came true according to the prophecies,
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But it also describes events at the end of days.
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In fact, daniel is very much a parallel
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Book for the book of revelation.
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So we begin this exciting adventure,
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One chapter each episode and we will unfold the mysteries
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Of the bible, but also the future yet to be.
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The old testament
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Book of daniel tells the story of a young prophet.
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But who was daniel and why were young jewish
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Men and women like him taken captive to babylon?
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Jewish tradition says that daniel was, as a young man,
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Taken out of the land of israel and brought to babylon
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About ten years before the destruction of the first temple.
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Nebuchadnezzar, or the emperor babylon, comes to jerusalem
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And takes out the 10,000 best and brightest,
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And the jewish tradition
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Understands that he took out most of the torah scholars
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And the leadership
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To bring them to babylon in advance,
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Which at the time seemed like a disaster,
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But in hindsight actually worked out really well,
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Because then, when the mass of jews
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Came to babylon a decade later, the infrastructure was there.
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He was one of the early arrivals,
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Along with other characters such as mordecai,
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Who is the hero in the story of the book of esther,
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Where daniel and his companions, chosen
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Because they showed unusual promise.
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Is it possible they were taken to babylon
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Because they had noble or even royal bloodlines?
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Or could it be that they were taken
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Because the babylonians wanted to weaken israel's future
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By robbing her of those with the greatest potential
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For leadership?
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Daniel was a young man from the tribe of judah,
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And he was from a royal family.
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He was a special young man, and he was accompanied
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By other young men of judah.
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He was especially wise.
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He was full of understanding and revelation.
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Well, daniel was among the young men of israel
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Who were taken into captivity in babylon.
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And, but he kind of rose to the top
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Because he had they had such good qualities.
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They were good looking. they were intelligent.
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They were, young men of understanding.
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And they'd been chosen by the babylonians
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For special service in the king's court.
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So they went through three years of instruction and testing
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And, emerged as, as young leaders.
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But of course, their names were changed to babylonian names.
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History shows
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That as the babylonian empire grew and embraced new cultures,
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It was their common practice to choose the brightest
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And best young people from within.
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These newly conquered cultures as trainees.
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This as a means of developing new and cross-cultural
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Leadership across the vast and ever expanding empire.
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Daniel and his companions were taken to babylon
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Because they wanted
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To bring in the people of israel into their empire,
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And they were building a multicultural, multiracial,
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International empire that included people from all
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Different regions.
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And they wanted the best, that they could find.
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And so they took the best of israel into captivity.
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They didn't want israel to be a threat to them.
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They wanted to really
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Co-opt to the israelis and make them babylonian.
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When nebuchadnezzar
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Had risen to power, he was conquering lands.
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He came to israel.
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He took over israel.
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And in their pattern,
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They were taking the best
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Of all the young men for his own service,
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For nebuchadnezzar's own service in his,
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In his palace, in his kingdom.
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Daniel didn't go to babylon of his own free will.
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Nebuchadnezzar. the babylonians, they came.
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They destroyed jerusalem.
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They took the people of judah into exile.
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Daniel was one of those.
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He joined the rest of the exiles in the land of babylon.
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They were doing a brain drain on the country,
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And he was one of the up and coming talent.
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And he proves, as he rises to,
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To power as a chief advisor to multiple emperors in babylon.
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I guess they they picked wisely in advance.
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But again, he was one of many people
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Who was taken in advance, to basically,
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I mean, the babylonians
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Were interested sort of in making a kind
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Of united colors of benetton empire.
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That was their unique way of doing things,
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Unlike people like the persians who weren't interested in that.
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So they basically
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Seem to have gone from place to place, taking out
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The best in the brightest they could get their hands on
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To bring them to babylon, to, i guess, make it the,
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A multicultural and very progressive in terms
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Of, you know, intellectual, intellectual empire
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With a capital city
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That had the best and brightest from all over their empire.
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But why did daniel and his companions,
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Who were about to be trained for service in the king's court,
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Risk their futures and their lives by refusing
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To eat the king's food?
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So why did daniel in chapter one refuse with an animation
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Desire to eat the, king's food wasn't kosher?
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Basically, meat has to be kosher.
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Even wine has to be kosher.
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So, i having someone who travels around the world
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A lot, i appreciate that point.
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I often end up in places where there's no kosher food.
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And these people are very spiritual,
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Religious people keeping the jewish law.
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They didn't want to violate
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A basic tenet of jewish life by eating non-kosher food,
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Which the danger of that is a starvation and b being impolite,
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You know, not refusing hospitality
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In the middle east considered not such a nice thing.
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But they put,
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You know, god's law above any of that other stuff.
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If daniel and his companions knew that refusing to eat
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The king's food could be seen as a direct insult to the king
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And could lead to a death sentence, why was this a risk
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They were willing to take?
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The word i would point
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To there in the text is the word defile.
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It says that daniel refused or asked
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If he could refuse because he was he was still,
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Connected and submitted to to those leaders in chief.
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Advisors.
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But he asked to refuse the food based on a statement.
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He did not want to be defiled by the king's food.
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So for me, as i'm studying the the words of the old testament
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And the food laws as they were given to the people of israel,
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I can define defiled by food in two ways.
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One, it could be that the food was not meeting
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The kosher requirements,
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Meaning it was an unkosher, unholy type of food.
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Or number two, even if it was a kosher type of food.
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If that food had been sacrificed to idols,
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He would have needed to refuse
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That as to not defile himself either.
00:10:09.478 --> 00:10:11.313
So i see the word defiled there,
00:10:11.313 --> 00:10:13.049
And it leads me to think in two directions.
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Either was an unkosher food element,
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Or the food itself had been sacrificed to an idol.
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Does this mean that their love for and devotion to
00:10:21.223 --> 00:10:23.826
The god of israel was greater
00:10:23.826 --> 00:10:25.661
Than their fear of death at the hands of the babylonians?
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Daniel and his young companions
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Really clung to their identity as the people of god.
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This was really, really important
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To them, even as exiles
00:10:37.573 --> 00:10:39.241
And being co-opted into the babylonian kingdom.
00:10:39.241 --> 00:10:43.012
They wanted to remain jews,
00:10:43.012 --> 00:10:45.147
And it was important for them to maintain the laws
00:10:45.147 --> 00:10:47.683
And the traditions, the heritage of their fathers, and to obey
00:10:47.683 --> 00:10:51.487
The commands of god,
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Particularly when it came to the dietary restrictions.
00:10:52.655 --> 00:10:55.691
So even though they were offered the best food in the realm,
00:10:55.691 --> 00:10:58.861
And the sitting at the king's table,
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They refused because of their identity
00:11:00.896 --> 00:11:03.432
And their desire to serve the god of heaven.
00:11:03.432 --> 00:11:06.168
As the book of daniel unfolds,
00:11:06.168 --> 00:11:08.370
It becomes clear that this first test of daniel's
00:11:08.370 --> 00:11:10.940
Devotion to god would be followed by many more.
00:11:10.940 --> 00:11:13.776
Daniel's abiding faith and trust in god, however, allowed him
00:11:13.776 --> 00:11:17.513
To overcome each and every trial and turn a journey of devotion
00:11:17.513 --> 00:11:21.917
That would lead eventually to the day
00:11:21.917 --> 00:11:23.753
When jesus of nazareth
00:11:23.753 --> 00:11:25.287
Would look back at daniel's life and remind his disciples
00:11:25.287 --> 00:11:28.691
Of the things daniel had prophesied.
00:11:28.691 --> 00:11:30.693
In fact,
00:11:30.693 --> 00:11:31.594
It was within the context of his own
00:11:31.594 --> 00:11:33.529
Teaching about the distant future
00:11:33.529 --> 00:11:35.297
That jesus called daniel a prophet.
00:11:35.297 --> 00:11:41.704
Don't go away.
00:11:42.037 --> 00:11:43.072
After this short break, doctor
00:11:43.072 --> 00:11:44.440
John tweedie returns with his teaching.
00:11:44.440 --> 00:11:48.010
The people of israel face significant challenges every day
00:11:49.145 --> 00:11:53.082
Due to the ongoing threat of war and random terror attacks.
00:11:53.082 --> 00:11:56.218
Resources are often redirected to the military
00:11:56.218 --> 00:11:59.054
Instead of helping the most
00:11:59.054 --> 00:12:00.289
Vulnerable children at risk and the elderly.
00:12:00.289 --> 00:12:03.292
Many children
00:12:03.292 --> 00:12:04.493
Go to bed hungry each night and 1 in 3 lives in poverty.
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But you can make a difference.
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Your monthly support demonstrates
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That you genuinely care for those in need,
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And for a monthly gift of $25 or more.
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We'll send you
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This 13 episode series shows why israel is in a constant
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Struggle for survival,
00:12:24.947 --> 00:12:26.348
But also explains how god has guaranteed israel's
00:12:26.348 --> 00:12:29.084
Future against all odds.
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Join us in making a positive difference.
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Call 1-888-206-1986 or donate online at c4i.
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Stand with us for the people of israel
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So they will know they are not completely isolated
00:12:43.966 --> 00:12:46.335
And alone in these trying times.
00:12:46.335 --> 00:12:59.982
As we begin our study of the book of daniel,
00:13:00.883 --> 00:13:02.985
The obvious questions who was daniel
00:13:02.985 --> 00:13:07.256
And why is there a book bearing his name?
00:13:08.123 --> 00:13:11.627
Well, in a sense, the answers are in the book itself.
00:13:11.627 --> 00:13:15.264
We begin in chapter one.
00:13:15.798 --> 00:13:18.500
The very first verses.
00:13:18.500 --> 00:13:19.902
And of course, the context here
00:13:19.902 --> 00:13:21.737
Is the attack on jerusalem, israel
00:13:21.737 --> 00:13:25.207
By king king nebuchadnezzar of babylon,
00:13:25.207 --> 00:13:28.477
The armies of babylon sacked jerusalem.
00:13:28.477 --> 00:13:31.814
So this is the historical context that's mentioned here
00:13:31.814 --> 00:13:35.551
In the third year of the reign of king.
00:13:35.551 --> 00:13:38.087
King of judah.
00:13:38.087 --> 00:13:39.355
Nebuchadnezzar, king of babylon, came to jerusalem
00:13:39.355 --> 00:13:43.359
And besieged it.
00:13:43.359 --> 00:13:44.760
Actually, he did this more than once, and the lord
00:13:44.760 --> 00:13:47.596
Gave jehoiakim king of judah into his hand.
00:13:47.596 --> 00:13:51.267
Of course, this was the judgment coming from the prophecies
00:13:51.267 --> 00:13:55.671
Of jeremiah, god's prophet,
00:13:55.671 --> 00:13:58.007
With some of the articles of the house of god,
00:13:58.007 --> 00:14:00.609
Meaning the sacred temple vessels
00:14:00.609 --> 00:14:03.612
Which he carried into the land of shinar,
00:14:03.612 --> 00:14:06.448
The region of babylon, to the house of his god.
00:14:06.448 --> 00:14:09.952
In other words,
00:14:09.952 --> 00:14:11.053
These were the victors spoils, at least in his mind,
00:14:11.053 --> 00:14:14.123
And the taking of those sacred vessels
00:14:14.123 --> 00:14:17.026
Would come back to haunt babylon later on.
00:14:17.026 --> 00:14:20.896
And he brought the articles into the treasure house of his god.
00:14:20.896 --> 00:14:24.500
Then the king
00:14:24.867 --> 00:14:25.834
Instructed us, as the master of his eunuchs,
00:14:25.834 --> 00:14:28.871
To bring some of the children of israel
00:14:28.871 --> 00:14:31.240
And some of the king's descendants,
00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:33.142
And some of the nobles.
00:14:33.142 --> 00:14:35.044
Now we find, as we read on, that daniel is one of these
00:14:35.044 --> 00:14:38.614
Young people, probably a teenager when this happened.
00:14:38.614 --> 00:14:43.085
And the suggestion then is because they were
00:14:43.085 --> 00:14:46.088
The babylonians were taking the cream of israel's young people
00:14:46.088 --> 00:14:50.059
To train them in the ways in the court of babylon.
00:14:50.059 --> 00:14:53.896
So they took the children of promise.
00:14:53.896 --> 00:14:55.931
And why wouldn't they take children
00:14:55.931 --> 00:14:57.433
From noble families, even the royal family?
00:14:57.433 --> 00:15:00.102
Because they would train them in their ways, and therefore
00:15:00.102 --> 00:15:03.405
There would be no promising young people to rise up
00:15:03.405 --> 00:15:06.442
And restore the kingdom of israel.
00:15:06.442 --> 00:15:08.177
So here's the description.
00:15:08.177 --> 00:15:10.012
We're given verse four.
00:15:10.012 --> 00:15:11.246
Young men in whom there was no blemish
00:15:11.246 --> 00:15:14.083
But good looking, gifted, and all wisdom,
00:15:14.083 --> 00:15:16.986
Possessing knowledge and quick to understand
00:15:16.986 --> 00:15:20.489
Who had ability to serve the king's palace and whom
00:15:20.489 --> 00:15:23.692
They might teach the language and literature of the chaldeans.
00:15:23.692 --> 00:15:28.697
Another word generally for babyl
00:15:28.697 --> 00:15:34.069
Then watch this,
00:15:34.470 --> 00:15:35.771
And the king appointed for them a daily provision of the king's
00:15:35.771 --> 00:15:38.774
Delicacies, and of the wine which he drank.
00:15:38.774 --> 00:15:41.777
And three years of training for them,
00:15:41.777 --> 00:15:43.812
So that the end of that time they might serve before the king
00:15:43.812 --> 00:15:48.384
An apprenticeship of three years in the court of babylon.
00:15:48.384 --> 00:15:51.286
Before that even be ready to serve in the king's court.
00:15:51.286 --> 00:15:54.890
Now here's where we get the names.
00:15:54.890 --> 00:15:58.060
And of course, the name of daniel.
00:15:58.060 --> 00:16:00.896
Now, among those of the sons of judah
00:16:00.896 --> 00:16:03.999
Were daniel, hananiah,
00:16:03.999 --> 00:16:06.535
Michelle, and azariah.
00:16:06.535 --> 00:16:09.638
And if you look at the hebrew meanings of those names,
00:16:09.638 --> 00:16:11.707
And i'll come to that later, each of those names contains
00:16:11.707 --> 00:16:15.911
The name of the almighty god of israel.
00:16:15.911 --> 00:16:19.948
Now, how do we understand the book of daniel?
00:16:20.916 --> 00:16:23.052
Well, it's not completely, chronological.
00:16:23.052 --> 00:16:27.189
That's the first thing to understand.
00:16:27.189 --> 00:16:28.891
Most of it is,
00:16:28.891 --> 00:16:30.159
But there are a couple of chapters
00:16:30.159 --> 00:16:31.560
That are not in the proper chronological order,
00:16:31.560 --> 00:16:34.563
And they're placed where they are for a good reason.
00:16:34.563 --> 00:16:37.099
The first six chapters of the book cover history, essentially,
00:16:37.099 --> 00:16:41.837
While the second six chapters cover visions,
00:16:41.837 --> 00:16:44.506
In fact, prophetic visions of the future.
00:16:44.506 --> 00:16:47.543
So whoever arranged the book, presumably daniel, arranged it.
00:16:47.543 --> 00:16:52.181
This way
00:16:52.181 --> 00:16:52.981
Because he's given, in many cases,
00:16:52.981 --> 00:16:54.450
First person account of his experiences and therefore
00:16:54.450 --> 00:16:58.287
The third occasion, the writing of the book.
00:16:58.287 --> 00:17:01.623
The other thing to understand is,
00:17:01.623 --> 00:17:04.126
That third part of the book is written in aramaic,
00:17:04.126 --> 00:17:07.196
Which was the common language of the then world at that time.
00:17:07.196 --> 00:17:12.935
We know that jesus spoke aramaic,
00:17:12.935 --> 00:17:15.204
But he also spoke hebrew.
00:17:15.204 --> 00:17:16.438
And when he would be in the synagogue,
00:17:16.438 --> 00:17:18.207
He was reading the
00:17:18.207 --> 00:17:19.241
Hebrew scriptures, but the language was, aramaic.
00:17:19.241 --> 00:17:23.278
And so we the parallel today would be english.
00:17:23.278 --> 00:17:26.482
English is spoken the world over.
00:17:26.482 --> 00:17:28.917
People of various nations have their own individual
00:17:28.917 --> 00:17:31.620
Language and dialects, but in a general sense,
00:17:31.620 --> 00:17:35.424
English is the dominant language that is spoken
00:17:35.424 --> 00:17:38.160
In so many children in schools all over the world
00:17:38.160 --> 00:17:40.629
Realize
00:17:40.629 --> 00:17:41.897
That they need to learn english, so that's the way to think of
00:17:41.897 --> 00:17:45.267
The reason the book is written this way,
00:17:45.267 --> 00:17:47.336
Because some of it has to do with non-jewish gentile history.
00:17:47.336 --> 00:17:51.173
Others parts of it are very specifically hebrew history.
00:17:51.173 --> 00:17:54.810
And in fact,
00:17:54.810 --> 00:17:55.777
The toward the end of the book, it's in hebrew
00:17:55.777 --> 00:17:58.113
Because it's the prophetic future
00:17:58.113 --> 00:17:59.648
Of israel, really, that is being explained there.
00:17:59.648 --> 00:18:03.519
Well, who wrote this? incredibly.
00:18:03.519 --> 00:18:06.255
And you know what?
00:18:06.255 --> 00:18:07.422
Critics will say that, daniel
00:18:07.422 --> 00:18:10.859
Couldn't have written the book because it's all too accurate.
00:18:10.859 --> 00:18:14.363
It describes history in advance, which is to say,
00:18:14.363 --> 00:18:18.200
Whoever wrote this book is looking back at history,
00:18:18.200 --> 00:18:21.537
Seeing the events that have already taken place
00:18:21.537 --> 00:18:24.139
And therefore able to write them down.
00:18:24.139 --> 00:18:26.708
Yet other scholars say, well, the style
00:18:26.708 --> 00:18:29.478
And the writing is clearly that of someone that lived
00:18:29.478 --> 00:18:32.781
In the fifth century or sixth century, rather before christ,
00:18:32.781 --> 00:18:36.952
Which is more than 500 years before jesus
00:18:36.952 --> 00:18:40.055
Walked the green hills of galilee
00:18:40.055 --> 00:18:42.891
And you have to have your own interpretation.
00:18:42.891 --> 00:18:45.127
For me, the book was written by daniel. why?
00:18:45.127 --> 00:18:47.729
Because, well, i have other reasons for saying
00:18:47.729 --> 00:18:50.165
So, and i will come to them.
00:18:50.165 --> 00:18:51.833
But god is not trying to deceive us with his holy word.
00:18:51.833 --> 00:18:55.404
So if we're told that this is daniel's book,
00:18:55.404 --> 00:18:58.740
Then i believe it is daniel's book.
00:18:58.740 --> 00:19:00.209
But not just because of that.
00:19:00.209 --> 00:19:01.910
I will tell you now that jesus refers to daniel the prophet.
00:19:01.910 --> 00:19:07.149
And if that's what jesus says of daniel,
00:19:07.149 --> 00:19:09.685
Then i'm going to take what jesus says
00:19:09.685 --> 00:19:11.853
As being the important thing.
00:19:11.853 --> 00:19:13.855
But there are other reasons that,
00:19:13.855 --> 00:19:15.324
I believe that this is daniel's book,
00:19:15.324 --> 00:19:17.859
And in fact, i'm standing on the west shore of the dead
00:19:17.859 --> 00:19:21.997
Sea to my right and out of camera view is the
00:19:21.997 --> 00:19:25.100
Famous fortress of masada.
00:19:25.100 --> 00:19:27.069
To my left, up the shore of the dead sea
00:19:27.936 --> 00:19:30.339
Past and getty, where king david hid from king saul and saul.
00:19:30.339 --> 00:19:34.409
Soldiers were scouring the canyons.
00:19:34.409 --> 00:19:36.745
They're looking for david.
00:19:36.745 --> 00:19:38.046
And even beyond that,
00:19:38.046 --> 00:19:39.114
We've come to a place called home run home.
00:19:39.114 --> 00:19:41.783
Cameron is known as the place where the assassins lived,
00:19:41.783 --> 00:19:44.786
And they were a very religious sect
00:19:44.786 --> 00:19:47.623
Who refused to live in the cities of jerusalem
00:19:47.623 --> 00:19:50.559
Because they considered,
00:19:50.559 --> 00:19:52.127
The cities of judah rather,
00:19:52.127 --> 00:19:53.362
They considered them to be totally corrupt.
00:19:53.362 --> 00:19:55.564
They didn't want to live among judean society.
00:19:55.564 --> 00:19:58.533
They wanted to keep themselves apart.
00:19:58.533 --> 00:20:00.569
You know, in the 21st century, we have, some groups
00:20:00.569 --> 00:20:04.072
Like that as well.
00:20:04.072 --> 00:20:05.307
We have the amish, for example, and some,
00:20:05.307 --> 00:20:08.944
Some parts of the mennonite church that are more strict.
00:20:08.944 --> 00:20:12.481
Want to stay out of the always.
00:20:12.481 --> 00:20:14.483
They want their children not to be corrupted
00:20:14.483 --> 00:20:16.418
By the society around them.
00:20:16.418 --> 00:20:18.053
So they live out of the cities in their own
00:20:18.053 --> 00:20:20.722
Sort of country settings, very much like the amish.
00:20:20.722 --> 00:20:24.559
You can think of the scenes in that way.
00:20:24.559 --> 00:20:26.561
They were extremely religious.
00:20:26.561 --> 00:20:28.930
They lived by the letter of the law, the law of moses,
00:20:28.930 --> 00:20:32.234
And they recorded the scriptures and they wrote them
00:20:32.234 --> 00:20:35.771
And kept recording them.
00:20:35.771 --> 00:20:37.272
And they lived just up here
00:20:37.272 --> 00:20:38.840
Until the romans swept through here
00:20:38.840 --> 00:20:40.842
And presumably destroyed this community.
00:20:40.842 --> 00:20:43.645
But here's the thing. in 1947,
00:20:43.645 --> 00:20:47.616
Chance
00:20:47.816 --> 00:20:48.650
Would have it, just before israel
00:20:48.650 --> 00:20:51.687
Reestablished as a nation after 40, nearly 2000 years.
00:20:51.687 --> 00:20:56.024
But in 1948, the united nations recognized israel.
00:20:56.024 --> 00:21:00.862
But the year before, they found what were known as the dead
00:21:00.862 --> 00:21:03.465
Sea scrolls in caves up the coast from here.
00:21:03.465 --> 00:21:06.635
And those scrolls were written by the assyrians,
00:21:06.635 --> 00:21:09.604
In the century before christ,
00:21:09.604 --> 00:21:12.641
Presumably while christ was ministering on earth,
00:21:12.641 --> 00:21:15.477
And in the century after christ, until the romans
00:21:15.477 --> 00:21:18.013
Obliterated them and certainly scattered them.
00:21:18.013 --> 00:21:21.049
And they hid the scrolls, the scriptures, in the caves
00:21:21.049 --> 00:21:24.820
That were later found in 1947.
00:21:24.820 --> 00:21:27.689
But among those scrolls they found eight
00:21:27.689 --> 00:21:30.292
Complete books of daniel,
00:21:30.292 --> 00:21:33.829
Eight complete books of daniel, and many fragments.
00:21:33.829 --> 00:21:37.366
Now they were not books as much as they were scrolls,
00:21:37.366 --> 00:21:40.068
But it says to us that the sins, who are very meticulous
00:21:40.068 --> 00:21:43.905
Recorders of scripture and copiers of scripture,
00:21:43.905 --> 00:21:47.309
Revered the book of daniel enough
00:21:47.309 --> 00:21:49.878
That they were rerecording it,
00:21:49.878 --> 00:21:51.747
And they had to be very accurate.
00:21:51.747 --> 00:21:53.148
If they made one mistake, they threw the scroll away.
00:21:53.148 --> 00:21:56.351
Eight sets of the book of daniel were found
00:21:56.351 --> 00:21:59.254
In the caves up the coast.
00:21:59.254 --> 00:22:01.223
From here now.
00:22:01.223 --> 00:22:03.392
Themes in daniel first six chapters cover
00:22:03.392 --> 00:22:07.562
70 years of exile in babylon that i said jeremiah
00:22:07.562 --> 00:22:11.066
Prophesied would happen, and the last six visions
00:22:11.066 --> 00:22:14.403
Of the future and a prophetic timeline of events.
00:22:14.403 --> 00:22:17.606
Some events that haven't even happened yet.
00:22:17.606 --> 00:22:20.509
But i want to go back to chapter one and something
00:22:20.509 --> 00:22:23.345
That happened,
00:22:23.345 --> 00:22:24.379
And i read it earlier, where the king wanted
00:22:25.280 --> 00:22:27.549
The young man of judah to eat his food.
00:22:27.549 --> 00:22:31.286
As orthodox jews.
00:22:31.720 --> 00:22:32.921
They could not do that.
00:22:32.921 --> 00:22:34.356
They would defile themselves.
00:22:34.356 --> 00:22:35.690
So they refused.
00:22:35.690 --> 00:22:37.692
And so verse eight, but daniel purposed in his heart
00:22:37.692 --> 00:22:41.196
That he would not defile himself
00:22:41.196 --> 00:22:43.031
With a portion of the king's delicacies,
00:22:43.031 --> 00:22:45.100
Nor the wine which he drank.
00:22:45.100 --> 00:22:46.935
Therefore
00:22:46.935 --> 00:22:47.836
He requested of the chief of the eunuchs
00:22:47.836 --> 00:22:49.237
That he might not defile himself.
00:22:49.237 --> 00:22:51.373
Now the chief of the eunuchs knew that if they didn't eat
00:22:51.373 --> 00:22:55.410
And look malnourished when they were brought in
00:22:55.410 --> 00:22:57.279
Before the king, who's going to examine them?
00:22:57.279 --> 00:22:59.614
His head would be on the chopping block.
00:22:59.614 --> 00:23:02.284
So what to do?
00:23:02.284 --> 00:23:04.453
So daniel has a conversation with them.
00:23:04.453 --> 00:23:06.321
In fact, he appeals to the
00:23:06.321 --> 00:23:08.990
The chief of the eunuchs, and he says to him in verse 12,
00:23:08.990 --> 00:23:11.893
Please test your servants, meaning us jews, for ten days,
00:23:11.893 --> 00:23:16.798
And let them give us vegetables to eat and water to drink.
00:23:16.798 --> 00:23:20.335
Then let our appearance be examined before you
00:23:20.335 --> 00:23:23.104
On the appearance of the young men who eat the portion
00:23:23.104 --> 00:23:26.308
Of the king's delicacies, and as you see fit.
00:23:26.308 --> 00:23:29.678
So deal with your servants.
00:23:29.678 --> 00:23:32.280
So he consented
00:23:32.280 --> 00:23:33.415
With them in this matter, and tested them ten days.
00:23:33.415 --> 00:23:36.952
And lo and behold, at the end of ten days
00:23:36.952 --> 00:23:38.987
Their features appeared better and fatter in flesh
00:23:38.987 --> 00:23:41.690
Than all the young men who ate the portion
00:23:41.690 --> 00:23:43.825
Of the king's delicacies.
00:23:43.825 --> 00:23:45.627
Thus the steward took away their portion of delicacies
00:23:45.627 --> 00:23:48.964
And the wine that they were to drink, and gave them vegetables.
00:23:48.964 --> 00:23:53.335
As for these four young men, god
00:23:53.335 --> 00:23:55.871
Gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom.
00:23:55.871 --> 00:23:59.541
And daniel had understanding in all
00:23:59.541 --> 00:24:02.477
Visions and dreams. now,
00:24:02.477 --> 00:24:06.882
At the end of the days
00:24:07.349 --> 00:24:08.783
When the king had said that they should be brought in,
00:24:08.783 --> 00:24:11.720
The chief of the eunuchs brought them in before
00:24:11.720 --> 00:24:14.990
Nebuchadnezzar.
00:24:14.990 --> 00:24:16.224
Of course the king.
00:24:16.224 --> 00:24:18.293
What happened then?
00:24:18.293 --> 00:24:20.128
I'll answer that after this short
00:24:20.128 --> 00:24:22.631
Break.
00:24:22.631 --> 00:24:40.282
So what was the outcome of the test when daniel
00:24:41.216 --> 00:24:44.019
And his three friends refused to eat the king's food?
00:24:44.019 --> 00:24:48.590
Well, the answer is written plain
00:24:48.590 --> 00:24:50.725
In chapter one of daniel, beginning in verse 18.
00:24:50.725 --> 00:24:54.596
Now at the end of the days mean the days of testing,
00:24:54.596 --> 00:24:58.199
When the king had said that they would be brought in,
00:24:58.199 --> 00:25:00.936
The chief of the eunuchs
00:25:00.936 --> 00:25:02.070
Brought them in before nebuchadnezzar.
00:25:02.070 --> 00:25:05.206
Now remember, this was a king who was known
00:25:05.206 --> 00:25:09.277
As a tyrant as well.
00:25:09.277 --> 00:25:11.046
He could be very cruel.
00:25:11.046 --> 00:25:12.414
He roasted his own officers over open fires.
00:25:12.414 --> 00:25:16.518
So with his word you could be killed on the spot.
00:25:16.518 --> 00:25:20.889
But notice what happens then the king interviewed them.
00:25:20.889 --> 00:25:24.793
He actually talked to them and engaged them in conversation.
00:25:24.793 --> 00:25:28.563
It would seem.
00:25:28.563 --> 00:25:30.632
And among them all,
00:25:31.099 --> 00:25:32.367
None was found, like daniel, hananiah, michelle and azariah.
00:25:32.367 --> 00:25:38.139
Now, these are their hebrew given names, but their names
00:25:38.139 --> 00:25:41.610
Are very interesting, because here's what they mean.
00:25:41.610 --> 00:25:47.349
Daniel means god is my judge.
00:25:47.983 --> 00:25:51.219
Hananiah means beloved of the lord.
00:25:51.219 --> 00:25:55.190
Michelle means who is as god.
00:25:55.824 --> 00:25:59.995
And azariah, the lord is my help.
00:25:59.995 --> 00:26:03.164
Imagine naming your children with god's name
00:26:03.164 --> 00:26:06.601
Within your children's names.
00:26:06.601 --> 00:26:08.436
In other words, linking them to god
00:26:08.436 --> 00:26:11.072
Even with the name that they're given
00:26:11.072 --> 00:26:13.241
And will be known by for the rest of their lives.
00:26:13.241 --> 00:26:15.944
Now, king nebuchadnezzar
00:26:15.944 --> 00:26:17.812
Changed their names and gave them babylonian names,
00:26:17.812 --> 00:26:20.649
But he could not change the nature of their hearts
00:26:20.649 --> 00:26:23.918
Or their belief system about the almighty god of israel.
00:26:23.918 --> 00:26:28.857
But this was a wise king in other respects.
00:26:28.857 --> 00:26:32.293
It's cruel at times, because then we see in verse 20,
00:26:32.293 --> 00:26:36.998
And in all manners of wisdom and understanding
00:26:36.998 --> 00:26:39.768
About which the king examined them, these four
00:26:39.768 --> 00:26:43.338
He found them ten times better than all the magicians
00:26:43.338 --> 00:26:47.042
And astrologers who were in all his realm.
00:26:47.042 --> 00:26:50.512
Then daniel continued until the first year of king cyrus,
00:26:50.512 --> 00:26:56.184
A time frame of some 70 years of exile
00:26:56.184 --> 00:26:59.821
In babylon from nebuchadnezzar to cyrus the great,
00:26:59.821 --> 00:27:04.125
And because of daniel and who he was
00:27:04.125 --> 00:27:06.561
And because he walked with god, he survived it all
00:27:06.561 --> 00:27:10.165
And served multiple empires.
00:27:10.165 --> 00:27:12.834
But he did it in the name of the god of israel.
00:27:12.834 --> 00:27:18.707
Thanks for watching the prophetic connection
00:27:19.641 --> 00:27:21.576
And tune in next week for the king's unsettling dream.
00:27:21.576 --> 00:27:21.576

John Tweedie - Taken Into Exile

April 13, 2026 | 27:31

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