“Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His. And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up kings; He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. He reveals deep and secret things; He knows what is in the darkness, And light dwells with Him. “I thank You and praise You, O God of my fathers; You have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of You, For You have made known to us the king’s demand.” Daniel 2:19-23
Daniel’s first response was to bless the Lord for hearing and answering their petitions. They asked for wisdom, and God gave it, and His mighty hand stopped the execution process and gave the four men time to pray. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5)
Little did the pagan “wise men” realize that the presence of the Hebrews in Babylon was making their deliverance possible. The God of heaven is also the God of history, for He can set and change the times allotted to rulers and to nations, which was the very thing Nebuchadnezzar was worrying about. The dream was “darkness” to the king but light to Daniel. Daniel included his three friends in his song of praise because they had shared the burden of prayer with him. Later he would share the honors with them and they would serve with him in the highest appointed office in the city of Babylon. When God answered Daniel’s prayer, he didn’t rush straight to the king, as one might expect. The first thing he did was to gather his three friends and praise God in a private worship service. Their words of thanks make up one of the most beautiful prayers recorded in the book of Daniel
Daniel courageously approached Arioch; the very man enlisted by Nebuchadnezzar to destroy the wise men of Babylon, and asked to be taken into the presence of the king. Arioch agreed, and in the next scene we see the interaction between Daniel and King Nebuchadnezzar.
Daniel is a book of prophecy, but the more important message that Daniel leaves with us is not the prophecy, but how to live for God in a world in chaos.