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The Book of Daniel is a very important book in terms of prophecy to understand God's plan for the world and God's plan for the future. The Book of Daniel is a key book; it helps to understand the Book of Revelation and many of God's plans concerning the future and even the present course of the world. This evening, from that important book, we want to learn just one aspect: the personal prayer life of Daniel. We find this in Chapter 2, Chapter 6, Chapter 9, and Chapter 10. In other words, Daniel was indeed a man of prayer, and four chapters out of twelve describe the prayer of Daniel. Since Chapter 2 is the first chapter in which we find the prayer life of Daniel, this evening I want to begin with it. God willing, we shall continue to look at other chapters as well in the future.

So, what do we learn from the second chapter of Daniel with regard to his prayer life? First of all, to understand that, we need to have a broad view of Chapter 2. The historical background is crucial in understanding what happens during this time.

Quickly, I will give you a picture of the situation in Chapter 2. In Chapter 1, verse 1, we are told that King Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, went to Judah and besieged Jerusalem. He won the battle and took many of the Jews into Babylon as captives. Daniel was one of those captives. The year was 605 BC during the reign of King Jehoiakim, king of Judah. In other words, by the time Chapter 2 took place, Daniel had already been in the land of Babylon. God punished Judah, the people of Judah, because of their sins. So, the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar came over and fought against the people of Judah, won the battle, and now many were taken into Babylon as captives.

By Chapter 2, we find Daniel already counted among the wise men of Babylon. This is because, in Chapter 1, many young Jewish boys were chosen for the king’s special training. Of course, we know his three friends—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—and this prophet Daniel himself. Four young boys were among those chosen to train for the Babylonian learning under the king’s full scholarship. The training was to last for three years, and by the time of Chapter 2, they had almost completed their training. Most probably, it was in their final year that the event of Chapter 2 took place. We know this because verse 1 of Chapter 2 tells us, “And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep break from him.”

So, he had a dream, and this is the beginning of the crisis of Chapter 2. This took place in the second year of King Nebuchadnezzar. Calculating the time transpiring, Old Testament scholars have come up with this date: In 605 BC, the Jews were taken into captivity, including Daniel. By this time, it must have been about two years at least. So, Daniel had already been in the king’s special training for two years. He is now in his third year, final year. We should also remember that Daniel was a teenager when taken into Babylon. Babylonian captivity scholars believe he was in his mid-teenage years, probably 15 or 16. So, by Chapter 2, he would have been 17 or 18 years of age—a very young man facing one of the greatest and most dangerous crises that any man can face.

Now that is the setting and the historical situation of this chapter. By the time we come to Chapter 2, we understand that King Nebuchadnezzar had dreams which troubled him greatly. He called for all the wise men to come together and asked them to tell him his dream and interpret it. He threatened that if they were not able to tell the dream and interpret it, he would destroy all of them. Among those wise men, Daniel was included.

So, what Daniel faced here was a life-threatening crisis, a life-threatening situation. The threat of the king is recorded in verse 5 for us: “The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dung hill.” Their lives were at stake; they were going to be killed if they were not able to tell the king's dream and its interpretation.

That is the case, that is the situation. Now let’s look at verse 14, where I want to start focusing on the prayer life of Daniel. So, when this thing had been confirmed and made known to Daniel, this is how Daniel responded. Look at verse 14: “Then Daniel answered with counsel and wisdom to Arioch, the captain of the king’s guard, which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon. He answered and said to Arioch, the king’s captain, Why is the decree so hasty from the king?”

Then Arioch made the thing known to Daniel. Then Daniel went in and desired of the king that he would give him time, and that he would show the king the interpretation. Then Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret, that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

Now, the challenge was indeed great. It was a very dangerous situation. But what did young Daniel do in such a situation? That is the question we want to ask, and the answer is even in the passage that I have just read to you from verse 14 to verse 18. We find how Daniel faced the crisis with prayer.

So, the first lesson we want to learn this evening is this: Daniel prayed when facing a crisis. Daniel prayed when facing a crisis. Immediately when he learned of the situation, Daniel did two things. Number one, he asked for a prolonged time, which is a practical action. And number two, he prayed. So, two things: he asked for sufficient time, and second, he prayed to his God. That is what Daniel did in this chapter.

Now, do you understand that prayer is an essential part of being a Christian? Sometimes we wonder why we pray. God is sovereign—absolutely sovereign—and He has decreed from eternity past everything that takes place on this planet Earth and in the whole universe. If that is the case, and that is of course the Biblical teaching, then why is prayer necessary at all? We ask questions like that.

However, we need to understand that prayers are encompassed in God's predestination, in God's plan. Prayer is ordained by God Himself for us as a means of grace whereby we can come to Him anytime for thanksgiving and for petition. In fact, in the Bible, we find that there are things which the children of God can obtain only by means of faithful, honest, and sincere prayers. God is able to give us anything that we need without asking on our part. Yet, He has ordained prayer in such a way that we will ask, we will pray. So, prayer is included in God's plan. Daniel understood that.

To Daniel, the first thing to do when facing a crisis is to pray. To pray. In James 1:5, we read these important words: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” In times of suffering, in times of trouble and crisis, the Apostle James teaches us to pray to God for wisdom. James had not been written during the time of Daniel, yet he understood this Biblical principle as a true believer and as a true man of God. He understood the importance and necessity of prayer.

In fact, one of the many profound lessons we can learn from the Book of Daniel is the necessity and power of prayer. Prayer is absolutely essential for the Christian life.

Now, what is the lesson for us from this response of Daniel? The lesson for us is not the bigness or smallness of our problems. We do have problems in this world, especially in this time where the end is coming very near. We hear of sad news every day, and we do have our own problems, whether big or small. Our problems today may not be as big and as dangerous as Daniel's, yet the fact is that we have some sort of problems and crises. That problem can come in many forms. The problem you are presently facing may be in your study, your work, your marriage, your relationships, your family, or even for those who serve in the ministry. We may have problems in the ministry as well.

So, whether it's big or small, whether it's very dangerous or not very dangerous, the principle remains the same. We do have our own crises. Daniel faced a life-threatening crisis that included the lives of all the wise men. We have our own problems, whether small or big. The question is this: What do we do when facing a crisis in life? Let’s start a lesson from this prophet of God, this godly young man. Although he was still very young, as mentioned earlier—he was just in his mid-teenage years—he was truly a man of God. He turned to the Lord for wisdom, for instruction, for guidance.

It is true, of course, it’s very sad that many Christians, when facing crises, do not turn to the Lord for wisdom. They turn to people and do unbiblical

things to solve their problems. And that may be true of some of us. We do have our shortcomings; many of us have failed in the past. Yet, this evening, I would like to encourage all of us: Even if we have failed in the past, let us learn once again the lesson that Daniel wants us to learn. That is, when we face any problem, any crisis in life, firstly let us go to the Lord. Let us pray. Let us inform Him, let Him know, let us tell our problems to Him. Let us bring all our petitions, all our worries and concerns to Him.

That is what we can learn from the life of Daniel. Secondly, let us continue to observe from verse 18 and verse 19. Now we are in verse 17, where Daniel went to his house and met with his three friends. Then what did he do? Verse 18 tells us, “That they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret, that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.”

What we find here is that Daniel prayed with his friends, or rather he was joined by his three close friends. So, the second point we want to remember tonight is this: Daniel prayed with his friends. The first lesson is that he prayed when facing a crisis. Now he prayed in the midst of the crisis with his close friends, who were also faithful to their God.

Remember earlier in Chapter 1, verse 8—a very familiar verse—Daniel took a personal stand that he would not defile himself with the foods and drinks provided by the king. When he made that decision, he was joined by his three friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. In verse 12 of Chapter 1, we see the use of the plural for the word “they,” which means he was joined by his friends. In this case also, he prayed, he decided to pray, and he was readily joined by his good friends.

As we face problems and troubles in life, how refreshing and encouraging it is to have people who love the Lord and stay close to us, remaining faithful in any circumstances. Whenever you make any plan for the Lord or take any step of faith for the work of the Lord, or whenever you face problems in your life, how encouraging and refreshing it is to have people who are very close to you, who love the Lord and who are faithful to the Lord.

It is important to note here also that the good testimony of Daniel influenced his friends. We are not suggesting that his friends were not good Christians; they were good believers. Yet they were stirred up and encouraged by the faithful and courageous stand of Daniel, so they joined him.

Our Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 18:20 tells us, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Our Lord appreciates the united prayer, the united worship of His people. Of course, individually, we need to pray and worship the Lord, but unitedly and corporately, we need to do it as well.

So, who knows? Your good testimony, your stand for the faith, how you face and respond to the crises of life may influence others who are weak in their faith to take similar steps. That will be a great testimony. We need one another’s encouragement.

Proverbs tells us that iron sharpens iron. Even for good Christians, they need other Christians to encourage them. Even for pastors and preachers, they need other Christians, other church people, other believers to encourage them in making a stand for the Lord. So one person faithful to God, making a Biblical decision, taking a step of faith, can influence others. Our Lord values such united effort, such united prayer.

Here we find a very interesting and revealing thing: God answers their prayer. Look at verse 19. “Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.” Unitedly they prayed, and then God heard their prayer from heaven and revealed the secret of King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream to Daniel in a very special way.

We all know the dream, don’t we? Let me give a short summary of the dream and its interpretation. Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream a very huge image composed of four parts: the head of gold, the shoulders of silver, the belly of brass, and the legs of iron and clay. These four parts represent the coming four succeeding world empires, beginning with the Babylonian Empire ruled by Nebuchadnezzar himself. In other words, at that time, most of the world was ruled by King Nebuchadnezzar. But after that, another kingdom, the Medo-Persian Empire, would appear and would be defeated by the Greek Empire. The Greek Empire would also be defeated by another world empire, which is the Roman Empire. According to the Bible, according to this second chapter of Daniel, there are four world empires: the Babylonian Empire, the Medo-Persian Empire, the Greek Empire, and the Roman Empire. During the Roman Empire, the Lord Jesus Christ will come for the second time because the stone that comes from the mountain without hands smote the image into pieces. This means that during this last kingdom period, our Lord will appear for the second time.

So shortly, that is the dream and the interpretation. But this evening we want to focus on how God answers Daniel’s prayer. Indeed, our God is a God who hears; our God is a God who answers prayer. So that is one of the reasons why we must pray.

By revealing this secret to Daniel and thereby also revealing it to King Nebuchadnezzar, God is showing that He is the master of all the kingdoms of the world. He is the Sovereign God, controlling all world affairs. These four world empires are under His control. He is showing His sovereignty, and that is also a very important lesson.

But we want to focus on how Daniel prayed honestly and how his prayer was answered. Sometimes you may feel that your prayer goes unanswered. You pray for someone or something for a very long time, yet you have not seen the answer in a very tangible way. But remember this: God answers our sincere, believing prayer only in His own way and in His own time. Sometimes we want our prayers to be answered instantly and in a manner that we want it to happen. But God is Sovereign. He answers our prayer according to His will and purpose.

The Book of Daniel teaches us that God hears our prayers, God answers prayers, and lastly, from the second part of verse 19 to verse 23, we see how Daniel did not forget to give glory to the God of his fathers. Look at the second part of verse 19. “Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.” After his prayer was answered, he blessed the Lord. Let me read verses 20 to 23 for you:

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are His. And He changeth the times and the seasons; He removeth kings, and setteth up kings. He giveth wisdom unto the wise and knowledge to them that know understanding. He revealeth the deep and secret things; He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with Him. I thank Thee and praise Thee, O Thou God of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of Thee; for Thou hast now made known unto us the king’s matter.”

This is Daniel’s Thanksgiving. Take note that when he gives thanks to the Lord, he uses the pronoun “we.” That means he doesn’t take the credit to himself; he acknowledges the prayer of his three faithful friends as well. Daniel was in his mid-teen years—probably about 17 or 18 years of age. Personally, I believe he was about 17 or 18 years old because, calculating the time when he was taken into Babylon and putting all the information available together, he was definitely under 20—most probably 17 or 18.

At such a young age, people often want to take every credit for themselves. Compared to mature and older people, young people are often quick to take credit. This doesn’t mean that older people are not tempted, as we are all tempted in one way or another, but at a young age, the temptation is stronger. Yet how mature Daniel was in his spiritual walk! He did not take any credit to himself; he acknowledged the contribution of his friends. They also prayed; he also prayed. Our prayer is answered. He gave thanks to the Lord.

Sometimes we forget to thank the Lord for answering our prayers. In times of need, we ask for prayer; we send our prayer items to the church, to friends, and to loved ones. Yet when the Lord answers our prayers, we forget to give thanks to Him. That shouldn’t be the case with us.

Another lesson we need to learn from the prayer life of Daniel is to give thanks to the Lord for hearing our prayers. Let me recap all the lessons that we can learn from this incident.

Firstly, whenever we are in a crisis, whenever we face problems, big or small, wherever it is, whenever it happens, let us never forget this: turn to the Lord first. Seek wisdom from Him; seek guidance from Him. This doesn’t mean that we are not to do our human responsibility, but it means the first thing we do must be to turn to God for help. Then we can do our human responsibility.

Number two: we can share our problems with our loved ones who are faithful to the Lord. It can be our friends, co-workers, relatives, family members, or church people. We can share with them our problems and we can pray together. Our Lord appreciates united prayer, as I mentioned earlier citing Matthew 18:20.

Thirdly, our God is a God who hears our sincere, believing prayers. He always hears and will answer our prayers in His own time, according to His own purpose and will.

Lastly, when our prayers are answered, let us never forget to give thanks to the Lord. Let us give all the credit to Him. This is the spiritual lesson we can learn from the prayer life of Daniel in Chapter 2.

I would like to encourage all of us to think back to the life of Daniel. He was a man of prayer. He completely trusted in the Lord. He prayed to the Lord; that should be true of us. Let us be a praying people, a praying church, a praying family. May the Lord bless all of us.

Let us pray. Father, we thank You for Thy godly prophet Daniel. We thank You for the godly testimony, the prayerful life that he had, and we want to learn from him. We all know our weaknesses and our shortcomings. May Thy Holy Spirit teach us tonight to face every problem by turning unto Thee, by looking up to Thee, and then to pray together as a church. We know that Thou hears us from heaven. Help us, O Lord, to always be thankful to Thee for what Thou hast done for us. For everyone who has come to this prayer meeting, either personally or virtually, we pray that You help each and every one of us learn something from Thy faithful prophet. Bless us together, for we ask and pray all these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.