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few years before Ezekiel the
priest was taken into captivity (and made an agricultural slave outside of the
city of Babylon) Daniel the prince had been taken (among many others), turned
into a eunuch, and brought into the very court of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of
Babylon. This turn of events had been prophesied by Isaiah to Hezekiah as is
recorded back in 2nd Kings 20:18 (compare to Daniel 1:3).
Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem in 3 phases, Daniel was taken in the first siege,
Ezekiel in the second and the temple in the last.
Daniel and three of his cousins from the tribe of Judah (Hananiah,
Mishael, and Azariah) were exceptional young men before they were ever taken
into captivity. But, in Babylon they were destined to be trained for 3 years
under the finest educational rigors that were available in that day. Along with
their schooling, they were supposed to be fed the same things that the king
himself was fed. This was problematic. Daniel was a good Jew who had committed
himself to maintaining his Jewish distinctness (even in this foreign land). The
things that the king was prone to eat would have included many items which had
been forbidden under Moses' law. So, Daniel asked the prince of the eunuchs (to
no avail) if he could have a simpler diet (Daniel 1:8-10). Since that didn't
work, he asked a steward (who was only responsible for a fraction of the
eunuchs) if he could have a 10-day test of eating a simpler diet (Daniel
1:11-13). It was a real step of faith for Daniel. He took the right stand (depending
upon God to reward his faith). His 3 companions were in on the test as well and
God certainly came through for them all.
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