Before moving
forward, it’s appropriate to put some flesh and blood on this story. For
all practical purposes, the story of Daniel asks the readers to understand that
Daniel has effectively become the second most powerful man in the
empire. He knew his position.
Similarly, it can be suggested that Jesus, in all likelihood knew (based
on the events of his life, from what He would have been told were the angelic
prophecies of His birth, to His experience at the age of twelve in Jerusalem,
to His baptism, to the miracles that attended His ministry), or at least had a
strong and abiding hope, that He was the Creator God’s Messiah for
Israel.
Daniel, who is
presented as a wise counselor and keen politician, would have been well aware
that Darius desired to make him the ruler of the kingdom. Likewise, if Jesus strongly believed Himself
to be the Messiah (to the point that He presents Himself as a messiah-figure,
while, according to the Gospel accounts of His life, also used messianic
titles, imagery, and language in reference to Himself), then He also strongly
believed that He was the one that was to be appointed as King of the coming
kingdom of God. Indeed, Jesus seems to be in a state of almost constant
awareness of what awaits Him at the end of His journey, as He is reported to
have made regular references to the betrayal and suffering and death and
resurrection to which He understood Himself to be headed.
The picture of Jesus
that is presented in the Gospels is one in which He has a complete mastery over
all that eventually happens to Him at the hands of His adversaries, especially
as He lays down His life willingly. So it was with Daniel. In the
narrative that bears his name, Daniel exudes an aura of measured control.
In addition, he was by no means a political novice, as before King Darius comes
on the scene, he is said to have dealt quite well with the great King
Nebuchadnezzar, gaining power and prestige in Babylon in the process.
Both Daniel and Jesus
were astute observers who were well engaged with the machinations of the
political machines of their days. Owing to this, there is very little
chance that Daniel was unaware of what was happening, just as Jesus is shown to
have known what was going on behind the scenes in the corridors of power, owing
to His miracles and His proclamation of the presence of the kingdom of God,
with its inclusion of all and sundry peoples.
Daniel, with the
position that he had attained, could quite easily have stepped in and protested
the decree that had been proposed. Had
he so desired, he could probably have kept it from being made. The same could presumably be said of Jesus,
as when He is arrested in the garden, He speaks of being able to call upon more
than twelve legions of angels to protect Him if that was His desire. It
is easy to imagine that, with the influence and power that he is said to have,
Daniel could very well have commanded the loyalty and affection of some of the
leaders of the king’s army, attempted a coup, started a revolution, and done
any number of things in an attempt to save himself from the repercussions of a
decree that was quite obviously directed at him.
Neither Daniel nor
Jesus chose such a route. Instead, Daniel, just as he had determined to
do from the time he reached Babylon, was going to put the Creator God of Israel
on display. More importantly, he was
going to put the covenant faithfulness of Israel’s God to rescue His people, on
display for all to see. This too was presumably Jesus’ goal, as He
trusted, based on the Scriptural record that was the source of His knowledge of
the Creator God, that the covenant God of Israel was going to fulfill His
covenant for the world (made with Abraham), through Him and through His death
and Resurrection.
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