Earlier text: General Articles. (I)THOUGHTS ON DANIEL.
By Uriah Smith
CHAPTER II.—THE GREAT IMAGE.
VERSE 24. Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon; he went and said thus unto him: Destroy not the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will show unto the king the interpretation. Daniel's first plea is for the wise men of Babylon. Destroy them not; for the king's secret is revealed. True, it was through no merit of theirs or their heathen systems of divination that this revelation was made; they were worthy of just as much condemnation as before. But their own confession of utter impotence in the matter was humiliation enough for them; and Daniel was anxious that they should so far partake of the benefits shown to him as to have their lives spared. Thus they were saved because there was a man of God among them. And thus it ever is. For the sake of Paul and Silas, the bands of all the prisoners were loosed. Acts 16:26. For the sake of Paul, the lives of all that sailed with him were saved. Chap. 27:24. These are but specimens of the countless instances all along the track of time in which the wicked have been benefited by the blessings of the righteous. Well would it be if they would remember the obligations under which they are thus placed. And what saves the world now? For whose sake is it still spared? For the sake of the few righteous persons who are yet left. Remove these, and how long would the wicked be suffered to run their guilty career? No longer than the Sodomites were suffered, after Lot had departed from their polluted and polluting presence. Yet the wicked will despise, ridicule, and oppress the very ones on whose account it is that they are still permitted the enjoyment of life and all its blessings. VERSE 25. Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, and said thus unto him, I have found a man of the captives of Judah, that will make known unto the king the interpretation. It is ever a characteristic of ministers and courtiers to ingratiate themselves with their sovereign. So here Arioch represented that he had found a man who could make known the desired interpretation; as though with great disinterestedness in behalf of the king, he had been searching for some one to solve his difficulty, and had at last found him. In order to see through this deception of his chief executioner, the king had but to remember, as he probably did, his interview with Daniel, verse 16, and Daniel's promise, if time could be granted, to show the interpretation thereof. VERSE 26. The king answered and said to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, Art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof? 27. Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, show unto the king; 28. But there is a God in Heaven that revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. Thy dream and the visions of thy head upon thy bed are these. Art thou able to make known the dream? was the king's doubtful salutation to Daniel, as he came into his presence. Notwithstanding his previous experience, the king seems to have questioned Daniel's ability, so young and inexperienced, to make known a matter in which the aged and venerable magicians and soothsayers had utterly failed. Daniel declared plainly that the wise men, the astrologers, the soothsayers, and magicians could not make known this secret. It was beyond their power. Therefore the king should not be angry with them, nor put confidence in their inefficient superstitions. He then proceeds to make known the true God who rules in Heaven, and is the only revealer of secrets. And he it is, says Daniel, who maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days. VERSE 29. As for thee, O King, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pass hereafter; and He that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee what shall come to pass. 30. But as for me, this secret is not revealed to me for any wisdom that I have more than any living, but for their sakes that make known the interpretation to the king, and that thou mightest know the thoughts of thy heart. Here is brought out another of the commendable traits of Nebuchadnezzar's character. Unlike some rulers who fill up the present with folly and debauchery, without regard to the future, he thought forward upon the days to come, with an anxious desire to know with what events they should be filled; doubtless that he might the better know how to make a wise improvement of the present. For this reason God gave him this dream, which we must regard as a token of the divine favor toward this king, as there were many other ways in which the truth involved in his dream could have been brought out, equally to the honor of God's name, and the good of his people at that time, and the benefit of subsequent generations. Yet God would not work for the king independently of his own people; hence, though he gave the dream to the king, he sent the interpretation through one of his own acknowledged servants. Daniel first disclaimed all credit for himself in the transaction, and then to modify somewhat the feelings of pride which it would have been natural for the king to have, in view of being thus noticed by the God of high Heaven, he informed him indirectly that, although the dream had been given to him, it was not for his sake altogether that the interpretation was sent, but for their sakes through whom it should be made known. Ah! God had some servants there, and it was for them that he was working. They are of more value in his sight than the mightiest kings and potentates of earth. Had it not been for them, the king would never have had the interpretation of his dream, probably not even the dream itself. Thus, when traced to their source all favors upon whosoever bestowed, are found to be due to the regard which God has for his own children. How comprehensive was the work of God in this instance. By this one thing of revealing the king's dream to Daniel, he accomplished the following objects: 1. He made known to the king the things he desired. 2. He saved his servants who trusted in him. 3. He brought conspicuously before the Chaldean nation the knowledge of the true God. 4. He poured contempt on the false systems of the soothsayers and magicians And, 5. He honored his own name, and exalted his servants in their eyes. VERSE 31. Thou, O King, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. 32. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, 33. His legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. 34. Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. 35. Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing-floors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them; and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. Nebuchadnezzar, according to the Chaldean religion, was an idolater. An image was an object which would at once command his attention and respect. Moreover, earthly kingdoms, which, as we shall hereafter see, were represented by this image, were objects of esteem and value in his eyes. With a mind unenlightened by the light of revelation, he was unprepared to put a true estimate upon earthly wealth and glory, and to look upon earthly governments in their true light. Hence the striking harmony between the estimate which he put upon these things, and the object by which they were symbolized before him. To him they were presented under the form of a great image, an object in his eyes of respect and admiration. With Daniel, the case was far different; and to him these same earthly kingdoms were afterward shown under the form of cruel and ravenous wild beasts. But how admirably adapted was this representation to convey a great and needful truth to the mind of Nebuchadnezzar. Besides delineating the progress of events through the whole course of time, for the benefit of his people, God would show Nebuchadnezzar the utter emptiness and worthlessness of earthly pomp and glory; and how could this be more impressively done than by an image commencing with the most precious of metals, and continually descending to the baser, till we finally have the coarsest and crudest of metals, iron, mingled with miry clay; the whole then dashed to pieces, and made like the empty chaff, no good thing in it, but altogether lighter than vanity, and finally blown away where no place could be found for it, after which something durable and of heavenly worth occupies its place. So would God show to the children of men that earthly kingdoms were to pass away, and earthly greatness and glory, like a gaudy bubble, would break and vanish; and the kingdom of God, in the place so long usurped by341 these, should be set up to have no end, and all who had an interest therein, should rest under the shadow of its peaceful wings forever and ever. But this is anticipating. VERSE 36. This is the dream; and we will tell the interpretation thereof before the king. 37. Thou, O king, art a king of kings; for the God of Heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory. 38. And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. Now opens one of the sublimest chapters of human history. Eight short verses of the inspired record tell the whole story; yet that story embraces the history of this world's pomp and power. A few moments will suffice to commit it to memory, yet the period which it covers, dating from twenty-four centuries in the past, reaches on down past the rise and fall of kingdoms, past the setting up and overthrow of empires, past cycles and ages, past our own day, over into the eternal state. It is so comprehensive that it embraces all this; yet it is so minute that it gives us all the great outlines of earthly kingdoms from that time to this. Human wisdom never devised so brief a record which embraced so much. Human language never set forth, in fewer words, a greater volume of historical truth. The finger of God is here. Let us heed the lesson well. With what interest, as well as astonishment, must the king have listened to the words of the prophet, as he informed him that he, or rather his kingdom, the king being here put for the kingdom (see the following verse), was the golden head of the magnificent image which he had seen. Ancient kings were grateful for success; and in cases of prosperity, the tutelar deity to whom they attributed their success, was to them the adorable object upon which they would lavish their richest treasures, and bestow their best devotions. Daniel indirectly informs the king that in his case all these are due to the God of Heaven, since he is the one who has given him his kingdom, and made him ruler over all. This would restrain him from the pride of thinking that he had attained his position by his own power and wisdom, and would enlist the gratitude of his heart toward the true God. The Babylonish Empire, this head of gold, was founded by Belesis, called also Nabonassar, and in the Scriptures called Baladan, B. C. 747. Arising from the ancient Assyrian Empire founded by Nimrod, Gen. 10: 9, 10, which had governed Asia for about thirteen hundred years, it reached the summit of its glory under Nebuchadnezzar, who added to his original dominions the provinces of Asia Minor, Phœnicia, Egypt, Syria, and Palestine. These, with the empire of Babylon proper, embraced all the then known world of any national influence or power. See “Prideaux's Connection.” We do not take it to be necessary that Babylon, to be called a universal kingdom, should have had every class of people and every country in the world absolutely under its sway; for this was not in a strict sense the fact with any one of the kingdoms which are called in history universal kingdoms. Babylon never conquered Grecia nor Rome; but Rome was founded before Babylon had risen to the climax of its power. Rome's position and influence, however, were then altogether prospective; and it is nothing against the prophecy that God begins to prepare his agents long years before they enter upon the prominent part they are to perform in the fulfillment of prophecy. We must place ourselves with the prophet, and view these kingdoms from the same stand-point. We shall then, as is right, consider his statements in the light of the location he occupied, the time in which he wrote, and the circumstances by which he was surrounded. It is a manifest rule of interpretation that nations are not particularly noticed in prophecy until they become so far connected with the people of God that mention of them becomes necessary to make the records of sacred history complete. When this was the case with Babylon, it was the great and overtowering object in the political world. In the prophet's eye, it necessarily eclipsed all else; and he would naturally speak of it as a kingdom having rule over all the earth. So far as we know, all provinces or countries against which Babylon did move in the height of its power, were subdued by its arms. In this sense, all were in its power. And this will explain the somewhat hyperbolical language of verse 38. That there were some portions of territory and considerable numbers of people unknown to history and without the pale of civilization as it then existed, which were neither discovered nor subdued, is not a fact of sufficient strength or importance to condemn the expression of the prophet, or to falsify the prophecy. LESSON FOR PACIFIC COAST.—AUG. 6.
The apostles had now passed through a lengthened and varied experience, and besides the constant instruction of their Master's words and life, had learned from their own hearts how great their moral deficiencies still were. Their faint-heartedness, irresoluteness, and want of faith, were evident, and they were thus brought to that modest self-distrust which alone could fit them for the heavier duties before them. They were now to rise from the position of dependent and simple followers and scholars, and become co-workers with Jesus, and that not only on the good soil already sown, but, rather, on the hard trodden paths, the stony ground, and that pre-occupied by thorns. In Gadara and Nazareth they had learned to distinguish the opposite aspects of unbelief; in the one, that of common natural selfishness and harshness; in the other, that of proud, perverted fanaticism. After long wanderings and continuous trials, the twelve were now, in their Master's opinion, in a measure prepared to work by themselves in spreading the new kingdom. In spite of the opposition of the interested professional classes, the enthusiasm of the people to hear the new teaching was unabated. Multitudes followed Jesus wherever he appeared; the synagogues still offered access to the whole population each Sabbath, and in all the cities and villages of Galilee, the "gospel of the kingdom" was the great topic of conversation. Under any circumstances, the crowds following Jesus would have touched a heart so tender, but their wild despair and religious enthusiasm made the sight of them doubly affecting. Might they not be won to the peace and joy of the glad tidings? They seemed to him, the Good Shepherd, like a great flock needing many shepherds, but with none; footsore with long travel, wandering they knew not whither, with no one to lead them to still waters and green pastures. "The harvest," said he to his disciples, "is plenteous, but the laborers are few; pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth laborers into his harvest." There were multitudes to be won for the new kingdom,—multitudes prepared to hear, for their spirits were broken under personal and national sorrow. But the number of right teachers was small. He decided, therefore, to delay no longer sending forth the twelve. Calling them together, he told them his purpose, and fitted them to carry it out. As a proof of their mission from him, he invested them with authority over spirits, and gave them power to heal diseases. They were to confine themselves for the present to Jewish districts, avoiding Samaritan towns, and not entering on the road to heathen parts. Galilee itself was thus virtually their field of labor, for heathenism had a footing in every place round it, and within a few miles of them lay Gadara, Hippos, Pella, Scythopolis, and even Sepphoris, with heathen worship in their midst. Judea and Jerusalem were not to be thought of. The simple Galileans would be a better beginning for the apostles than the dark, bigoted population of the south. One day they would be free to visit Samaria, as he himself had already. Meanwhile they must not stir up Jewish hatred by going to either Samaritans or heathens. Moreover, their own Jewish prejudices unfitted them for a mission to any but Jews, for, even after this, the first signs of hostility made John wish to call down fire from heaven on a Samaritan village, and they were not fit as yet to handle aright the many questions such a journey would elicit. Besides, Israel must have another year in which to bring forth fruit; and withal, it was their first independent journey. The burden of their preaching was to be the repetition of that of John, and of Jesus himself, when he began. "The kingdom of Heaven is at hand." Like John, they were heralds, to prepare the way. "Heal the sick," said He, "raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons." They had received their miraculous gifts freely, and must dispense them as freely. Their equipment was to be of the simplest, for superfluity diverted the mind from the great object, and made an extra burden which would only hinder them on their journeys. It became them, also, by their humble guise, to disarm the suspicion of worldliness, and to show their implicit trust in God. They were to take no money; not even any copper coin in their girdles—the usual Eastern purse; nor a wallet for their food by the way; nor two under garments, but were to wear only one; nor were they to have shoes, which looked like luxury, but only the sandals of the common people, and they were to have only one staff. They were to go as the peasants of Palestine often do yet, trusting to hospitality for food and shelter; offering in their simplicity a striking contrast to the overflowing robes and bright colors of the population at large. But they were not to go alone. Each must have a companion, to accustom them to brotherly communion, to give counsel and help to each other in difficulties, and to cheer each other on the way. No mention is made of the synagogues in their instructions; it may be, because the apostles were not yet confident enough to come forward so publicly. It was to be a house-to-house mission. While every traveler, according to the custom of the country, greeted his acquaintances with laborious formality, raising the hand from the heart to the forehead, and then laying it in the right hand of the person met; even, according to circumstances, bowing thrice, or as many as seven times; they were forbidden to indulge in any greetings by the way. Time was too precious, and their mission too earnest for empty courtesies. On entering a town or village, they were to make inquiries, to guard against their seeking hospitality from the unworthy, but having once become guests, they were to stay in the same family till they left the place. They were to enter the dwelling which heartily welcomed them, with a prayer for its peace. Any house or city, however, that refused to receive them, was to be treated openly as heathen, by their shaking off its dust from their feet as they left it. But woe to such as brought down this wrath; it would be better at the last day for Sodom and Gomorrah, than for the Galilean village in such a case. To these directions for the way Jesus added warnings that might have well filled with dismay men less devoted. He predicted for them only "the persecution and universal hatred, jails, public whipping, and even death, but cheered them by the promise that their brave and faithful confession of faith in him, before governors and kings, would serve his cause, and that endurance to the end would secure their eternal salvation. They would be like helpless sheep in the midst of treacherous wolves." No details are given of the mission, except that the twelve went on a lengthened circuit through the towns and villages of Galilee, preaching the need of repentance, and the glad tidings of the new kingdom; and that their ministry was accompanied by miraculous works of mercy—the casting out of devils, and the anointing of many sick with oil, and healing them—which were themselves proofs of their higher success, since such wonders were, doubtless, as in the case of their Master, wrought only when there was a measure of faith.—Geikie's Life of Christ. THE INQUISITION NOT DEAD.
The Roman correspondent of the New York Observer thus writes about the Inquisition:— "As to the existence of the Inquisition even now, no liberal Roman doubts it, although it has no longer the power to burn and torture and imprison. Only the presence of the Italian government renders it harmless. But tokens of its existence are given now and then by the prohibition of new books. They are put 'in the Index'—that Index which must now contain the noblest and best of Italian thought for centuries. Padre Curci also, a Jesuit of liberal opinions, was a year or two ago banished from the Order. When the Roman Republic was established in 1849 the palace of the Inquisition was converted into homes for the poor, first being exposed to the public for a few days. It was proposed to raze it to the ground, and erect a column of infamy on the spot, but the idea of using it for the poor prevailed. But when the French replaced Pius IX. on the papal throne, the Inquisition took possession of that palace again, and it returned to its original use. After that fearful revelation of its secrets the Jesuits did not presume to torture as they had done, but they did keep prisoners there 'in duro carcere.' The liberals, whom they persecuted and imprisoned instead of heretics and Jews, were kept in another prison—that of San Michele—but this was also the work of the Jesuits and their tool, the Holy Inquisition. Many liberals, still comparatively young men, now live in Rome who were imprisoned there for years. Only the entrance of the Italian government into Rome in 1870 opened the prison doors, and also let into the gates of the city that noble army of Italian exiles who had been wandering in strange cities and in foreign lands. "Volumes could be written on this subject, and those who wish to inform themselves in regard to it can read a book which, I think, has been translated into English—'Papal Rome' by the Rev. Luigi de Sanctis. Professor Timothy Dwight's book on the 'Roman Republic of 1849' also gives many interesting details. Of this there is no doubt, that wherever the Jesuits go there will be the Inquisition in one form or another. Far from being dead two hundred years ago, it still lives, and would display all its fierceness even in New York if it had the power." BETTER CHARACTER NECESSARY TO BETTER TEACHING.
No one can teach well who does not live well. If words are as bullets, the character back of the words is as the powder which makes them effective. In small communities the teacher is well known to all his scholars. Does he keep a store, or work a farm, or run a mill, and cheat a little on weight or measure on the plea that “they all do it”? The sharp boys and girls will not forget that fact when he is talking to them about the sin of worldliness. Is he passionate, vindictive, impatient, puffed up, envious, given to small tattling? His exposition of sweet “charity,” as given in the thirteenth chapter of first Corinthians, will have small power to draw his young pupils. Their reasoning, though half unconscious, is conclusive to their own minds. It amounts to about this: If our teacher is so little affected by these truths which he attempts to teach, how can he expect them to affect us who are only taught? Some older people are sure they see the logical and practical fallacy of this reasoning. Long experience has taught them that consistency is so rare a jewel that not one in a thousand will possess it. They know something of the astonishing blindness of all people to their own faults, while they are so sharp-eyed to see the faults of others. They have ceased to expect perfection or rounded symmetry in Christian character, knowing the weakness of “poor human nature.” They are rather glad to hear anybody talk better than they act, so be it they are not hypocritical or conceited; for it seems to show that the ideal within them is not wholly dead. Such talkers are not quite satisfied with themselves, and they are still less satisfied with the low attainments of their neighbors. When a man is content with himself as he is he ceases to advance. Paul never seems to have settled into the comfortable indolence which is a prevalent fashion among modern Christians. “I count not myself to have apprehended,” he says, but I press towards the perfect standard of Christian character given us in Christ Jesus. O, for a little of Paul’s noble discontent with ourselves as we are! When we are better Christians we shall be better teachers.—Sunday-School World. Suppressing the Opium Trade
By S. S. Workman
Our Bible Teacher aptly remarks, that "men interested in the manufacture or sale of liquors are seldom friendly to the success of churches and Sabbath-schools: They recognize an inevitable antagonism between these and their trade. In China the strongest enemies of Christian missions are the merchants engaged in the opium trade. This business is the source of their greatest gains. The late treaty between the United States and China forbids Americans engaging in this nefarious trade, and so will prove material aid to the success of the missionaries, as well as relieve in some measure the calamities which foreign nations have brought upon China by forcing upon its people this mischievous drug." We hope that all good people, and especially members of churches and Sabbath-schools, will exert their influence in favor of educating the masses to favor the enactment of a general prohibitory law for the suppression of this nefarious trade.—S. S. Workman. "THEY that seek me early shall find me."