To say Daniel was chosen by God for a unique task is an understatement. Had there been no Babylon, he'd have been a giant among men in Judea, figuratively, and perhaps somewhat literally. We have ample evidence he bore a genius-level intellect, but as a son of royalty or upper nobility, he would have been physically larger than average. Peasants throughout history suffered mild to severe malnutrition, and were generally smaller than the well fed privileged classes. Further, it's almost certain he had already received extensive martial training. Most importantly, he was a moral and spiritual giant. God had prepared Daniel's soul to fulfill a role for which he is still famous today, but was even more famous during his lifetime.
Just a few years previously, King Josiah had gone out to do battle against Pharaoh Neco of Egypt. Pharaoh was marching along the coast of Palestine on the way to face Babylon, the former tributary of Assyria. Pharaoh was a faithful ally of Assyria, and sought to restore the empire to Nineveh. He had no interest in Josiah, but once the latter was killed and his troops scattered, Judah became a tributary of Egypt. Pharaoh replaced Josiah's successor with a brother eager to please him, Jehoiakim. In 608 BC, the new king returned to Jerusalem with orders to collect a massive tribute, bankrupting the little kingdom, to support his battle against Nebuchadnezzar far to the north at Carchemish. Pharaoh was defeated and the army of Babylon eventually rolled through Judea on the way south to Egypt, taking portions of the royal household and some upper nobility as hostage against Jehoiakim's good behavior.
Thus, in 605 BC, Daniel found himself in the entourage of royal hostages sent to Babylon. We should not imagine this as chains and abuse, but not necessarily plush treatment, either. Still, royalty of any nation was treated with respect befitting their class until they rebelled. Daniel and his relatives were not hustled off in a forced march, but took a few months at least, traveling by wagons. Along with the people was a majority of the Temple treasures, especially the fine gold and gold-plated furnishings. In Babylon, the people were probably kept in a quarter of the city designed to accommodate dignitaries from across the empire. The emperor of any nation would naturally desire to enlarge his court with the best of foreign servants, if for no other reason to have the service of people with no possible local political loyalties against him. Also, the more exotic the mix, the greater the ruler's grandeur.
The order was given to sift through the hostages of Judea for young men who looked royal and could absorb the academic training necessary for court service. Daniel and his friends were the best qualified. Given new names somewhat parallel to their original Hebrew names, either in meaning or in sound, their new identities were a dramatic departure from their former lives. They would have been about 15, as this was the age when a privileged lad had gained the full flower of early manhood, and would not lose much when castrated. Given the man appointed to this task, named by his title as Chief of Eunuchs, we are foolish to think Daniel and his friends were not made eunuchs themselves. This ancient custom was more than the obvious matter of trusting men as harem guards, though it began there. Rather, it symbolized far more. Pertinent here is to note it made a man trustworthy for the most private matters of the Emperor's household, an elevation in social rank just short of the princes in the realm.
The training was to focus on Chaldean literature and history. The name "Chaldean" was an ancient term derived from the region -- Chaldees or Chaldea. The language was similar to Hebrew. Oddly, it was a return to the language of Abraham, also called today Aramaic or Syriac. Hebrew was more the language of Canaanites. Somewhere far back in ancient Mesopotamia, there arose a class of priestly princes. They were highly cultured and educated, and gave themselves to the biggest field of research of those times: the study of various religions. We recognize Balaam as among them, as well as the Magi seeking Jesus. Succeeding waves of conquest adopted the heritage of these men and their academies as their own, with massive funding to underwrite construction of libraries and translations of every legend available, recorded on clay tablets in cuneiform. While Daniel and his friends would learn to read and write Chaldean, the purpose was to become fully acquainted with this body of literature, with large doses of astrology, black magic, and proto-science, along with legends gleaned from every culture and ethnic group conquered by every empire in turn.
Under the tutelage of Josiah's reforms from birth, Daniel was determined to remain as faithful to his God as he could. This was not about fighting, but about winning by taking upon himself the burden of proof. His faith was sufficient to press the matter, but quite willing to accept failure if Jehovah did not grant them favor. While there is little of the food and wine itself which threatened their purity, it was that both meat and wine were offered first to pagan gods before seeing the Emperor's kitchen. Massive quantities of this food kept a whole cadre of pagan priests busy each day in preparation for all the hundreds, perhaps thousands, who "dined from the king's table," as it were. The meats would have been as varied as any could imagine, but all would have been offered first to idols. The wine would have been fermented as often in temples as anywhere else. Thus, Daniel and his friends chose the one sort of food which escaped such handling: things which were served fresh as harvested. The term would include anything grown from seeds and picked or cut, with little further processing, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, grains, and the like. All of these were kosher, and God blessed this choice in a test, to make them appear healthier by Babylonian standards than all the rest of the students.
Upon their personal interview before the Emperor, these four stood out. We should read the description as standard Semitic superlatives, rather than a precise description. The language of the text is designed to make us feel we are there, to experience it for ourselves, rather than to provide a detailed explanation. The narrative conjures a vision of Jehovah watching over these four young men, seeing to it they prospered and brought to their calling a background and commitment lacking in all the other students from the other exotic places around the empire. Viewing all things in light of the Lord's revelation imparts a far wiser understanding, a better grasp of what matters. God had plans for these boys. At the same time, it indicated He had a strong interest in Babylon's health and prosperity, at least for a time. As it turns out, Daniel managed to serve the entire Exile Period, and was taken into the service of the Medo-Persian conquerors some 70 years later.
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Ed Hurst
05 November 2007
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