Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23
That verse isn’t in today’s reading, but it very much applies to the story of these four young Judahites living in a strange land. Before they were carried off as captives to Babylon, Daniel and his three friends had made up their minds to serve God. There was no question about serving and worshiping foreign men or their gods. They knew the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and although they had no idea what to expect under the hand of Nebuchadnezzar or his successors, they knew they would serve the LORD.
So, when presented with food and wine from the king’s table, they had no decision to make. When following God, life isn’t about little daily decisions that steer people off the narrow road. For those who have already made that one huge, important decision to be God’s servant, there’s no decision at all when faced with the choice of being someone else’s (or something else’s) servant. That’s not to say it’s easy, but it’s easier having already decided that no matter what, you’ll follow God.
Thus it was that when offered the king’s food and drink, Daniel and his friends refused. I can think of at least three reasons why they might have seen this as against the will of God:
- The meat and wine were likely used in pagan worship and offered to idols.
- The meat was most probably not prepared in accordance with God’s law.
- The young men wanted to continue their vegetarian diet they were accustomed to.
Let’s dismiss #3 right off the bat. There’s no reason to assume they were vegetarians, and in fact there’s every reason to believe they were not. (There was plenty of meat in a Jewish diet.) I think #2 alone would have been enough for them to refuse, but it’s my opinion that it’s reason #1 that was their primary reason for refusal.
I know what Paul wrote to the Corinthian church about eating meat sacrificed to idols (1 Corinthians 8), but that was written to Jewish Christians, and these guys were just plain Jews. I don’t find any prohibition in the Old Testament from eating such meat. However, it was a compromise. God instructed the Israelites not to “be careful not to make a treaty with those who live in the land; for when they prostitute themselves to their gods and sacrifice to them, they will invite you and you will eat their sacrifices.” (Exodus 34:15)
I’d like to suggest two lessons we can learn from this early glimpse at these 4 young men:
- The first step for them toward solving their problem is one I’ve already mentioned: They gave themselves wholly to the LORD. Daniel’s heart belonged to the LORD, as did the hearts of his friends (Daniel 1:8). “A heart that loves the Lord, trusts the Lord, and therefore obeys the Lord has no difficulty making the right choices and trusting God to take care of the consequences.” (Warren Wiersbe)
- They were gracious to those in authority. They knew what they should do — what they were going to do — but they weren’t defiant. They had respect for the king, no matter how much they disagreed with him. Daniel and the others saw this as an opportunity to prove God and glorify His name.
When it comes to facing our problems, the important question isn’t How can I get out of this?, but rather What can I get out of this? (James 1:2)