DANIEL 1:1-7
EXILE

Application Guide

READ THE TEXT

DANIEL 1:1-7

1 In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it. 2 The Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with some of the vessels from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar carried them to the land of Babylon, to the house of his god, and put the vessels in the treasury of his god.

3 The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring some of the Israelites from the royal family and from the nobility— 4 young men without any physical defect, good-looking, suitable for instruction in all wisdom, knowledgeable, perceptive, and capable of serving in the king’s palace. He was to teach them the Chaldean language and literature. 5 The king assigned them daily provisions from the royal food and from the wine that he drank. They were to be trained for three years, and at the end of that time they were to attend the king. 6 Among them, from the Judahites, were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. 7 The chief eunuch gave them names; he gave the name Belteshazzar to Daniel, Shadrach to Hananiah, Meshach to Mishael, and Abednego to Azariah.

APPLICATION QUESTIONS

  1. In general, was there anything that stood out to you from the sermon or the reading of the text? Was there anything you were encouraged or confused by?

  2. How were the young Hebrew men pressured to either fight culture or flee from it? What pressures do we feel in our day?

  3. God’s command to those in exile was to settle down and seek the good of the city where they were dwelling. What are some ways that this might inform us as we live in our cities and communities?

  4. The nation of Israel experienced exile. What are some ways you have experienced a sort of exile in your own life?

  5. How might the book of Daniel encourage us in the midst of our ‘exile’? What role does community play in this encouragement?

  6. How was the gospel and the work of Jesus magnified through the text or sermon?

  7. Is there anything the Spirit is calling you to obey as an individual or as a group?

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