Daniel 1:1 - 20

When Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon captured Jerusalem during the reign of king Jehoiakim, many of the royal family and the nobility were taken to exile. The king then commanded the chief eunuch to bring the youth of Judah who were handsome, wise and without blemish to serve him in his palace.  One among the four chosen youth was Daniel whose Babylonian name was Belteshazzar.

Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the pagan king’s rich food or wine, but opted for vegetables to eat and water to drink because he knew that the gentiles ate food which had blood from what was strangled and cooked, unlike the Jewish way. Daniel abstained from all the gastronomical delights that the pagan palace offered in order to keep himself undefiled before God.

After ten days of eating vegetables and drinking only water, the chief steward of the palace observed that Daniel looked better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the Babylonian youth who feasted on the king’s rich food.

When Daniel was summoned by king Nebuchadnezzar, he too noticed that none among the youth of Babylon were found like Daniel – ten times smarter in every matter of wisdom and understanding than any other youth in the Babylonian palace.

God honoured this little resolution that Daniel took, to keep himself undefiled in the matter of food and drink, to be blessed naturally and supernaturally.

Thought for the day: Little resolutions taken to keep ourselves undefiled can lead to great blessings from God!