"There is a man in your kingdom" Daniel 5:11
Harry Foster
THE New Testament reminds us that our position in this world is that of pilgrims, but it also asserts that we are ambassadors from the court of heaven. How can this contrasting experience be applied to the same person? Daniel provides us with an excellent example of this divine paradox. He was a captive in a strange land, but he was also God's key man, placed in the very heart of the kingdom of this world to serve the interests of that other kingdom, the kingdom of our God and of His Christ.
Fundamentally the book of Daniel is only about two kingdoms, as interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream in Chapter 2 clearly shows. It is true that, as the book unfolds, the kingdom of this world is seen in a great variety of aspects, but it is essentially one kingdom, and it is in constant antagonism to the kingdom of heaven. We have to look on to the last New Testament book to find the stark truth of the two kingdoms, for there we are told of a future day when "the kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our God and of His Christ" (Revelation 11:15). For the moment the stern encounter still proceeds as it did during the period covered by this book. Various earthly rulers functioned during those seventy odd years, but we have the story of the man who lived and functioned for [65/66] God through them all. Daniel was God's key man in Babylon.
He is introduced to us as one of the first captives brought to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar, and described as the one who continued until the first year of Cyrus, which was the year when the captivity ended (1:21). In fact he lived beyond that year, but both here and in 6:28 our attention is especially called to the fact that he survived during the whole seventy years of Israel's captivity. No doubt his survival required divine miracles, but my contention is that he did more than survive; he played a key role in God's watchful care for His captive people and for the sacred vessels of the temple which had been brought to Babylon from Jerusalem.
This book of Daniel continually asserts the absolute sovereignty of God, stating, illustrating and predicting that the YAHWEH of Chapter 9 and the Ancient of Days of Chapter 7 is indeed the Most High God. From His supreme throne in heaven the Lord chooses to work through His own men here on earth, and especially through their prayers. For this reason He took care throughout all those seventy years of captivity to have Daniel as His representative at the heart of the worldly kingdom and to preserve and promote him as and when the occasion demanded.
It is not actually stated that Daniel's influence with Cyrus brought about the release of the captives (though his prayers certainly did), but it seems reasonable to suggest that his promotion (2:48), his reinstatement to rulership (5:29) and his close relationship with Darius (6:3) made it possible that his counsels helped the next ruler, Cyrus, to plan the rebuilding of Jerusalem. When Cyrus issued the edict for the release of the Jewish remnant, he specified that the gold and silver vessels should also be released and restored "each to its place" in the rebuilt temple. One senses the influence of Daniel in this matter.
