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Daniel 1:1-2 — The Invasion of Jerusalem

Daniel 1 begins with a description of the historical setting in which the captivity of Daniel and his friends took place. (See “The Kingdom” in Daniel Lesson 1 commentary for background on the Jews’ disobedience to God, which resulted in His judgment being carried out through these foreign peoples.) At this time Judah, the southern kingdom of Israel, was under the domination of Egypt after Pharaoh Neco had killed Judah’s King Josiah in battle. The people of Judah anointed Josiah’s son Jehoahaz as king, but after three months Pharaoh Neco took him prisoner and removed him from power, replacing him with his older brother Jehoiakim who favored Egypt. (See 2 Kings 23:29-34.)

Nebuchadnezzar was not yet the king of Babylon but would become such before the summer of 605 b.c. was over. His father, Nabopolassar, had been struggling with the Egyptians for control of the Middle East for several years prior to this time, but in this particular year he was taken ill and had to remain at home. His army was entrusted to Nebuchadnezzar and the young crown prince made good by soundly defeating the Egyptians at Carchemish. When his father died before the summer ended, Nebuchadnezzar was made king.

The occasion when Nebuchadnezzar besieged Jerusalem and took Daniel and other Israelites captive was sometime between the battle of Carchemish and the event of his coronation. Nebuchadnezzar must have followed the retreating remnants of the Egyptian army for at least part of the way to Jerusalem and then gone on to the city. Jerusalem was the first city to be subjugated in his overall campaign to take all of the leading cities of the area for his domination.

Because he conquered the city, Nebuchadnezzar demanded valuable plunder from Jerusalem, including sacred objects from the Temple and also captives, among whom were young men like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. Only some of the precious articles from the Temple in Jerusalem were taken to Babylon at this time. The remaining items were later removed in 597 b.c. when Nebuchanezzar again besieged Jerusalem.

The removal of these sacred articles from the Temple to Babylon had been prophesied in Isaiah 39:3-7. Hezekiah, the king of Judah at that time, had allowed the Babylonians to visit him and had boastfully shown them all of the treasures in his own house and in his land. The prophet Isaiah told Hezekiah that the Lord would one day allow Babylon to carry off all these treasures, and some of his descendants would become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. We see in Daniel 1:1-4 that Isaiah’s prophecy was beginning to be fulfilled.

Things did not look good for Judah at this point. The best of their young men and the articles from the house of God had been taken to Babylon. They were conquered and Jehoiakim was left in charge of Jerusalem. Yet God’s kingdom did go on. Truly He does control the rulers of this earth. So often Christians feel discouraged with conditions in the world. We need to remember what Romans 13:1 says, “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.” Are you praying for the governing authorities of your city, state and country? Remember that God has established them and that you are responsible to obey and pray for them.

The people of Judah could have become very discouraged with their authorities! Jehoiakim died and his son, Jehoiachin, came to the throne. He rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar who in 597 b.c. besieged Jerusalem again. Once more Jerusalem was not destroyed, but the king and his mother and all the remaining treasures of the Temple were taken away to Babylon with an even larger group of captives. Over ten thousand craftsmen made this journey. (See 2 Kings 24:6-16.) Then Zedekiah, the uncle of Jehoiachin, was made king and also later rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar. This time Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the Temple and burned Jerusalem. The sons of Zedekiah were slain in his presence, and then Zedekiah’s eyes were put out. He, with the final deportation, went into captivity in the year 587 b.c. This fulfilled the prophecy recorded in Jeremiah 25:8-11.