“Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine.” God’s Old Testament children lived under a code of regulations that God had announced from Mount Sinai, which he had placed on the people of Israel as a special discipline. One of the provisions of this Sinaitic law-code was that the Israelite people were permitted to eat the meat only of those animals that were considered “clean.” (Leviticus chapter 11 describes in detail which animals and fish and fowl were acceptable for food.)
Furthermore, before a Jew could eat the meat of even a clean animal, he had to be sure the animal had been properly slaughtered and its carcass properly drained, since God had forbidden his people to eat blood. The Babylonians did not observe these dietary laws God had given his people. To remain loyal to the covenant God had established on Mount Sinai, Daniel and his three friends had to say no to the king’s command.
There was a second reason why Daniel refused to eat the royal food. If we may judge from 5:4, statues of the gods were brought to Babylonian festival meals. One commentator has noted, “All meals served at the king’s table were feasts . . . in honor of the gods. A portion of the meat to be served would first be dedicated to some god in sacrifice. The eating of the remainder meant sharing in the sacrificial meal, which was, of course in honor of the god” (Leupold, Exposition of Daniel, page 66). A portion of the wine from the king’s table would also be poured out as an offering to the gods of Babylon. Such a meal had aspects of a celebration to heathen gods, and God had made it quite clear that his chosen people had no business taking part in the worship of idols (Exodus 34:15). Daniel, therefore, had to ask himself, “If I were to accept food from the king’s table, would I give the impression of giving honor to false gods?” The question answered itself, and Daniel and his three friends asked to be excused from obeying that portion of the king’s command.
Similarly, there are some activities today in which we may be asked to join but which a Christian cannot in good conscience take part in. It would have been easy for Daniel to follow the king’s command with the excuse “I have no choice. I’m a captive here, and I must obey.” Daniel might have argued, “I want to make the best of my situation here in Babylon. To disobey the first command of the king is about the worst way I could start.” But Daniel realized that even in far-off Babylon, he was not free to disobey God. The aim of life, regardless of where we live, is to glorify God.
Daniel stated his request politely. He asked only for permission not to defile himself. Even so, it would have been natural for the official in charge to become impatient with what could have seemed like insolence on the part of this Jewish youth. He might have told Daniel, “Look, who are you to give orders? Have you forgotten you’re only a captive?” Or he simply might have told Daniel, “Don’t be so fussy. You should be grateful to be alive and to have something to eat—and king’s food at that! Your friends back in Jerusalem aren’t so lucky. Now eat!”
But the official did not say that. He did not get angry or impatient with Daniel, because “God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel.” The man wanted to help Daniel, but his hands were tied. He knew it wasn’t up to him to change the king’s decree, and he explained to Daniel why he could not excuse Daniel from eating the king’s food. We know from the account of the three men in the fiery furnace (chapter 3) and of Daniel in the lion’s den (chapter 6) that ancient kings didn’t appreciate having their subjects refuse to obey. The official was not exaggerating when he said, “I am afraid of my lord the king. . . . Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.” If while on his self-chosen vegetarian diet Daniel would lose weight or look pale, the king might find out that one of his officials had ignored the royal command, and that could cost the official his head. Nebuchadnezzar had the power of life and death over his subjects (2:5).
At this point it would have been easy for Daniel to say, “Well, at least I tried. I didn’t want to obey the king’s order, but now I have no choice.” But Daniel did not say that. Instead, he tried once more. He now spoke to the guard who had been assigned to the four young men and pleaded, “Would you be willing to try a ten-day experiment? Surely there would be no harm in that. For ten days give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. Then treat us in accordance with what you see.” The food made objectionable by the king’s sacrifices to his god was meat and wine. Vegetables would not be objectionable, and this is what Daniel asked for. The word translated as “vegetables” really means “things sown,” and would therefore include cereal grains. Bread would be included in their menu. Daniel purposely made the trial period short so that the guard couldn’t refuse. God blessed Daniel’s efforts, and the guard granted his request.
There are several features about Daniel’s request that impress us. One is his absolute unwillingness to disobey the clear word of his Lord. For Daniel the truth was more important than the consequences. And the truth of the matter was that God designed us to live under him as his children, not alongside of him as equals who have the right to disagree with him. God does not grant anyone the right to say no to him.
Another thing we admire about young Daniel is his faith. Through the prophet Isaiah, God had promised that those who trust him “will not be put to shame” (50:7; 54:4), and Daniel had absolute confidence that the Lord would make it possible for him to live according to the dietary laws he had announced to his Old Testament people from Mount Sinai. That was God’s revealed will, and God is absolutely committed to helping us to do his will. Not only was Daniel confident that, with the Lord’s blessing, a simple diet would make the four young men look healthier and better nourished, he was even confident that the king’s officials would be able to recognize this in less than two weeks!