Strange Story: Daniel 1 & 3 The Names of Daniel and His Three Friends

In Daniel Chapter 1 Their Names Were Changed

According to Daniel 1:7 – GOD IS MY JUDGE (Daniel), was given the name BEL PROTECT HIS LIFE (Belteshazzar).

Bel was the titulary god of Babylon, the first god on their list of gods; he was considered older than Baal and associated also with the name Marduk. We could say Bel was to Babylon what Baal was to the Philistines.

To THE LORD SHOWS GRACE (Hananiah), [he gave the name] COMMAND OF AKU (Shadrach) (Aku was their moon god).

To WHO IS WHAT GOD IS? (Mishael) [he gave the name] WHO IS WHAT AKU IS? (Mish aku or Mish ak), 

To THE LORD HELPS (Azariah) [he gave the name] SERVANT OF NEGO (Abednego)

Now GOD IS MY JUDGE had resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine ….

Why?  because “God is my judge” that’s why.

2:11  they (the gods) do not live among men, they do not interact with man, or reveal themselves to men —  ah, but the real God does. in v.22 we read that the true God reveals deep and hidden things.

2:26-28  “Are you able to tell me what the dream means?”  – no.  But there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.

Daniel Chapter 3 The Super-Heated Furnace

Here we see the beginning of the irony surrounding their names and a possible reason why their Babylonian names are used, not their Hebrew names as is consistent in chapters 1 and 2.

It was a laughable situation: their names had been changed but not their hearts (in other biblical accounts it usually happened the other way around, the heart was changed and then the name). Here were these men with names pledging allegiance to Babylonian gods but they were not loyal to those gods, they remained loyal to the Hebrew God. The irony is so strong as to make one want to chuckle.

In 3:26 the king calls them “servants of the most high God,” but he refers to them by their Babylonian names which ascribe power to the Babylonian gods.

Then in 3:28 the king says something even more contradictory.

Because they were faithful to their own God, despite the name change, their God was honored, while people still referred to them by their new and blasphemous names.

Granted, that is how they were known by others and they were leaders in their communities. People might not know who they were if their Hebrew names were used. It is likely that the king did not know their Hebrew names, and probably had never heard them.

The irony in this story is palpable. Names usually pointed in the right direction to convey the intent of the story, but occasionally, the reverse was true and the names point in the opposite direction, demonstrating a rich irony. Such is the case here. Our God has a sense of humor and He can use any situation to bring Him glory.

The king’s final statement is “No other God can save like this.” It was more about the uselessness of all his other gods than it was about the power of this “new” God.

Take Away:

> Education is extremely important; catch them when they are young, fill their heads with what you want, and you may have them for life.

>  True change happens on the inside first, then it is revealed on the outside.

We cannot force change upon people.

> If you wear a name that points to God (like GOD IS MY JUDGE did) it should constantly remind you that you are His and you should obey only Him. The term Christian is that kind of a name because it has the name CHRIST in it.

>  Help people get to know what your God is like because we can know Him, He wants to reveal Himself to us. Help others see him too by how you live.

>  Be willing to obey even if it costs you everything, and even if God does not come through for you the way you pray he does.

> When you take a stand, people will admire you for taking a stand, even those who oppose you may admire you and wish they had what you have.

>  You are never alone.