Daniel 1 Commentary

Nebuchadnezzar conquers Judah and establishes his reign over the kingdom.

Because of their lack of obedience, God allows Nebuchadnezzar to conquer Judah. Nebuchadnezzar takes all of the items from the Temple and puts them with the items of his gods.

To completely conquer Judah, and to bring additional leadership to his court, Nebuchadnezzar took the best and the brightest of the Jewish people and forced them to learn Babylonian customs and to work for the Babylonian empire.

Instead of eating the food of the Babylonians, which would be in violation of God’s law, Daniel trusts God and eats what He commanded. Because of this faith, Daniel and his friends are blessed by God.

God allowed Daniel to be one of the chief’s favorite men so that the chief would let Daniel eat what his God commanded. Because of Daniel’s faithfulness, God bless him and his friends.

One of the central themes of the book of Daniel is God’s continued sovereignty for his people who trust and obey Him. Because Daniel and his friends trusted God and only ate the foods He allowed, they were blessed with more strength and wisdom than any of their Babylonian peers.