Daniel

Watch the video presentation on YouTube at: Daniel Video

To purchase slides or handouts, go to: Teaching with Power Etsy Shop

IN THE WORLD, NOT OF IT

ICEBREAKER

There is a major theme that we find in the stories of the first half of Daniel. And to introduce that theme, I like to play a little game with my students called singled out. What you do is ask your class to all stand up. Then, you as the teacher are going to make some random descriptive statements about a person. And what they’ll do is, If the statement is true about them, then they should remain standing. If the statement is not true about them, then they should sit down. The object is to see who the last person standing will be. Although, if at any point, all the remaining players sit down and there is nobody left, have those individuals stand back up until your statements lead to only one person remaining. Now I wouldn’t tell them this at the beginning of the game so as to encourage honesty, but I like to give the last person standing a treat for being singled out. So here are the statements you could make.

I’ve never broken a bone

I have a middle name

I own a dog

I’m at least five feet tall

I’ve been camping before

I’ve traveled out of my home state

I’ve been to the beach

I’ve watched Star Wars

My name does not begin with a vowel

I have or have had braces

I’ve needed stitches

I’ve been stung by a bee before

I’m wearing the color blue somewhere on my clothing

TRANSITION

Now as that last person is standing, I make this point. As you look around the room, is it easy to notice that one person that is standing? Yeah. It’s really easy when everyone else is sitting. What if somebody walked into our classroom right now who hadn’t played our game. Where do you think their attention would go to? I believe their eyes would be immediately drawn to the one person that was standing. Can you imagine an even larger crowd than the one we have here in our class. What if there were a couple hundred people here and this person was still the only one standing, do you think you’d notice them then? Yes. I think we would. How about thousands? Even then, I think they would still stand out, even in a crowd of thousands. When one person, or only a few people are doing something different from everyone else, our attention is instantly drawn to them. Well, in this lesson we’re going to study three different stories about four Hebrew boys who were not ashamed to stand up and stand out in the society that they lived in. What were these four boys names? Identify them in Daniel 1:6. So you have Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Now I know you’ve all heard of Daniel. But you may not recognize those other names. You’re probably more likely to recognize those last three boys by their Babylonian names. Daniel’s Babylonian name was Belteshezzar, which you’re probably not as familiar with. But what were Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah’s Babylonian names? You may know them as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Which, admittedly, are more fun to say. But, I really wonder how they feel about that. I imagine they would prefer us to call them by their Hebrew names, especially considering what we know about them and one of the major messages of their lives.

THE SETTING IS THE KEY

Now let’s first establish the background of these stories because it’s key to really understanding the lesson. Some of you may be wondering what Daniel and the others are doing in Babylon in the first place. And, they’re not there by choice. These stories take place after the Babylonian conquest of Judah and Jerusalem. And these four boys have been taken “captive”, kind of, into the capitol city of Babylon and the king’s palace. But they’re treated fairly well there. They’re not treated like prisoners. What’s happening to them is a great example of an Old-World technique that empires used to rule their conquered territories. It was a means of securing allegiances and unifying a diverse kingdom together. The Romans did this kind of thing all the time. It goes something like this. You conquer a nation, and then you select a number of gifted, noble, young people from the population, and you bring them into your own country and culture. There, you treat them well, educate them, feed them, and immerse them in your society and language. Then, when they’re older, and the former generation of their people begin to die out, you place these more loyal, integrated subjects into positions of authority over the conquered territory. Then you have allies within that nation, and you can more easily control and assimilate that nation to your liking. So in these stories, the kings these boys are serving are basically trying to turn them into Babylonians by buying their loyalty, in a sense. They change their names, and they encourage them to live like Babylonians, think like Babylonians, worship like Babylonians. What we have here is a classic example of believers trying to live their faith while surrounded by the influence of a very different world. To live like disciples of Jehovah in a Babylonian world. And can we relate? Yeah. I think so. That’s the exact situation that we all find ourselves in. So Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah are going to teach us how to live in the world, but not of the world.

SEARCH

The three stories that we’re going to focus on in Daniel all basically teach the same principle, albeit with a slightly different application in each one. We’re going to take all three and combine their messages all together into one big principle at the end.

The Stories

Our first activity then will be to review the basic outline of these three stories. To do this, you’re going to divide your class up into groups of three. And then assign individuals in those groups as either one’s, two’s, or three’s.

1’s will cover the story in Daniel 1:3-21

2’s will cover the story in Daniel 3:1-30

And 3’s will cover the story in Daniel 6:3-28

Tell them that they will need to become experts in their story and will need to be ready to summarize it to the other members of their groups. Give them about 5 minutes to read and review their story. To help them summarize their story, they are each encouraged to complete their own chronological picture activity. There are three separate handouts that you can give to each member of the group and have them put the pictures of their story into chronological order after reading their assigned verses. Once they’ve completed that, let them take turns sharing their stories with the other two members of their group.

So let’s correct those handouts really quick here together and summarize the stories ourselves.

STORY #1

B. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah are taken captive into Babylon.

E. They were offered food and wine from the king that was not according to the law of Moses. They refused to eat it.

C. The servant in charge of them was afraid for his life because he thought they would begin to appear weak and sickly by not eating.

A. Daniel and the others asked the servant to only feed them vegetables and water for ten days and then to see what effect this had on their health. They believed that God would bless them and keep them healthy.

D. At the end of the ten days, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were healthier and stronger than all the other boys.

STORY #2

D. The king had a massive golden idol built and demanded that all people bow down and worship it.

A. Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah refused to bow down to the idol.

B. The king threatened to throw them into a fiery furnace if they continued to refuse to worship the idol. They told the king that they believed God could deliver them from the flames, but even if not, they would not do it.

F. The king had them thrown into the fiery furnace, but they were protected, and a fourth person was seen walking with them in the flames.

C. Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah emerged from the fiery furnace unsinged and unhurt.

E. Their example helped the king to believe in the power of God.

STORY #3

F. Daniel was well liked by the king, which made the other king’s wise men jealous.

C. They tricked the king into making a new law prohibiting prayer.

B. Daniel chose to pray anyway and was arrested.

A. Daniel is thrown into a den of lions.

D. The next morning, the king discovered that Daniel had been protected from the lions all night.

E. Daniel was released from the lion’s den, which made the king very happy and increased his faith in Daniel’s God.

Now that activity should help your students to understand and know the basic gist of each of the stories and prepare them to have a deeper discussion about what they teach us. Together as a class now, we’re going to fill in four different charts that will hopefully help us to “Liken the Scriptures” to ourselves and compare their experience with ours. Let’s see what Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah can teach us by making this comparison.

The Pressure

First question. In each story, what were they being asked to do by the world, by Babylon? There’s a nuanced difference in each.

In Daniel chapter 1, they are being asked to partake of the king’s meat and wine. Now we know that Jewish people live under a very strict dietary law. There were certain animals that they were not to eat. Pork for example. And, the meat that they were permitted to eat was to be killed and prepared in a very specific way. Practicing Jews continue to live those laws today. Their food must be kosher before they eat it. So the pressure here is to eat the king’s meat and wine. Or, more generally speaking—to partake of something forbidden by God.

In our Liken the scriptures box, what are some examples of “the king’s meat” for us? What are some things that we are asked by God not to partake of. The Word of Wisdom comes to mind. We are not to partake of alcohol, tobacco products, coffee, tea, and illegal drugs. But there are some other things we could add to this list. What are some other worldly offerings that we are instructed not to partake of. Pornography, gambling, and inappropriate media could be added to this list, among other things.

Now the pressure that Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah face in chapter 3 is a little different. What are they being asked to do in that story? To bow down to the great golden idol. In this story, they are being asked to do something or believe in something that is contrary to the laws of God. To bow down to a worldly, man-made idol. And I find it fascinating that this thing was 60 feet high! That’s huge. Oftentimes, the idols of the world can seem large and intimidating.

In our liken the scriptures box, what are some of the “golden images” the world asks us to bow down to? And I really like that the scriptures use the word “image” to describe what it was. Because we too are asked to bow down to the “image” of the world. And what is the “image of the world”? What things and ideas are we pressured to do or believe by the world. There is the golden image of materialism. The golden image of popularity. The golden image of immorality. The golden image of secularism. We’re asked by many to believe that truth and morals are relative—that there is no right or wrong. That family values are outdated. That pornography use and fornication is normal. That God isn’t real. Amongst many other things. Just briefly brainstorm some of these things with your class. These are practices and beliefs that the world would have us worship.

And then our third story in chapter 6. Again a different type of pressure. In this story, Daniel is being commanded not to pray. He’s being asked NOT to do something that God has asked him to do. The King’s advisors sneakily manipulate the king into signing an irreversible decree banning the worship of any other God besides him for thirty days.

In our liken the scriptures box, what are some of the things the world would have us NOT do that God has commanded. There are plenty of modern-day decrees of Babylon. Thou shalt not believe in things that you can’t see or prove. Thou shalt not subject yourself to the authority of prophets and church leaders. Thou shalt not keep the Sabbath Day holy. And even the very decree Daniel is facing. Thou shalt not pray or demonstrate your faith publicly.

So you can see that our world is very similar to the world of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So what are we to do?

The Reaction

We do what they did. We follow their example. What did they do? That’s our next category. In each story, how did they respond to the pressure?

So number 1’s, what did they do in your story. What words and phrases from the scriptures would you pull out to answer that question?

Daniel 1:8 comes to mind.

“Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat.” In other words, Daniel had already made up his mind as to what he would do if put into that situation. Purposed means “decided to” or “resolved” that this is what he was going to do. The decision was made BEFORE the temptation had ever taken place.

A phrase in verse 12 stands out to me. They say, “Prove thy servants”. They place their faith in God’s power to bless them. There is a real danger here posed to the servant in charge of them and them as well. He worries that “then shall ye make me endanger my head to the king”. So the consequences here are real. But they demonstrate faith in God and assure this servant that if he would just give them ten days to prove themselves and their God, that God would take care of them and bless their appearance.

So to liken the scriptures here. How can we be like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah when temptation to partake of the things of the world comes? Purpose in your heart what you are going to do before the temptation ever comes. Decide right now. I will not look at pornography. I will not drink alcohol. If anyone ever offers me drugs or a vape, I’m going to say no. I am never going to put myself into a situation where I will tempted to be immoral. We can purpose in our hearts not to partake of the world’s meat. We can also show faith that God will bless us for refusing these things in the end.

Number 2’s. What do the three boys do in your story?

According to verse 12, we know that they regard not the king, and “serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou [the king] hast set up. They wouldn’t bow. Now I want you to picture that one for just a moment. It’s a lot like the situation we demonstrated in our icebreaker. Can you just see those three boys standing while everyone else is bowed to the ground. They couldn’t help but stand out in that situation once the worship music started to play. I wonder if the tune of that music was “Ring around the Rosy”. You know, “we all fall down”. In this situation, it would be painfully obvious that they were defying the king’s order.

To liken the scriptures, how can we be like Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah? We too can “STAND UP” for what we believe. But that can be a very difficult thing to do in these kinds of situations. When you know that everyone else is going to realize it. That’s it’s not going to be hid. I believe it’s easier to believe or do certain things in private, or to keep your religion to yourself. But what do we do when we’re placed into a situation where we can’t just fade into the background. When our values come face to face with those of the world. Those are the moments when we need to have the courage to stand up and stand out. Jesus taught this same idea when he said,

14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Matthew 5:14-16

Captain Moroni in the Book of Mormon also demonstrated this kind of courage. He wrote down what he believed in and waved it in front of everyone else for all to see. So these are the moments we defend our beliefs in front of the whole class, or team, or our group of friends. These are the times when we walk out of the movie in front of everyone else. These are the moments we dress modestly when everyone else is following worldly standards. These are the moments when the world says “bow” and we stay standing.

Now there’s more that these boys do in this story. When confronted by the king, their resolve not to bow becomes even more direct. I love what they say in verse 16. “O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter”. In other words. We are not going to be politically correct here. We’re not going to act in the ways of the world outwardly, but not mean it inwardly, and bow with our bodies but stand with our hearts. We make no apologies for our beliefs or actions. End of story. We’re going to wave our title of liberty, place our light on a candlestick. It reminds me of that great story from the life of Joseph F. Smith where a group of armed men ride into his camp, and one points a gun at his head and asks if he’s a Mormon. And what did Joseph F. Smith say staring down the barrel of a pistol? “Yesiree, true blue, dyed in the wool, through and through.” He wasn’t careful to answer him in that matter.

And then these two great verses.

17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king.

18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.

The classic talk regarding the message of those verses comes from Elder Dennis E. Simmons. And he gives such great illustrations of this attitude, so I prefer to just quote him. He said:

“They knew that they could trust God—even if things didn’t turn out the way they hoped. They knew that faith is more than mental assent, more than an acknowledgment that God lives. Faith is total trust in Him.

Faith is believing that although we do not understand all things, He does. Faith is knowing that although our power is limited, His is not. Faith in Jesus Christ consists of complete reliance on Him. . . .”

And then later in the talk, Elder Simmons gives us some great examples of “But if not” faith.

Our God will deliver us from ridicule and persecution, but if not. … Our God will deliver us from sickness and disease, but if not. … He will deliver us from loneliness, depression, or fear, but if not. … Our God will deliver us from threats, accusations, and insecurity, but if not. … He will deliver us from death or impairment of loved ones, but if not, … we will trust in the Lord.

Our God will see that we receive justice and fairness, but if not. … He will make sure that we are loved and recognized, but if not. … We will receive a perfect companion and righteous and obedient children, but if not, … we will have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, knowing that if we do all we can do, we will, in His time and in His way, be delivered and receive all that He has.”

Dennis E. Simmons (Conference Report, April 2004)

Hopefully we can demonstrate that same kind of “But if not” faith.

Now for the action in story #3. Daniel and the Lion’s Den. What did Daniel do?

Verse 10

10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.

Now I don’t think Daniel deliberately went home and opened his windows and prayed so that everyone would see him. I believe that he probably just went ahead and did what he usually did, “as he did aforetime.” He wasn’t going to do anything different or out of the ordinary. And the wise men just knew where he often prayed and laid in wait to get him. So once again we get an example of unashamed obedience. He refused to compromise his values. This, like Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, is “Waving your title of liberty” type commitment. But in this case, it isn’t about standing up and NOT doing what the world is asking you to do. But standing up and doing what the world is asking you NOT to do.

To liken the scriptures. How could we do the same? We can live our faith with the windows open. We should let our belief be seen. Now we don’t need to be obnoxious and prideful about it, but we shouldn’t seek to conceal it either. To not be ashamed to ask an employer for Sundays off to keep the Sabbath Day Holy. To not be ashamed to be caught studying our scriptures or praying. To not be ashamed to let people know what we believe and stand for. To be willing to share the gospel with others and to invite them to learn more or to represent the Church as a missionary. These are examples of open window obedience. Or as Paul put it in Romans 1:16. “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ.” We could also add a couple of other great phrases from this story. In verse 6:16 He served his God continually, and in 6:23 He believed in his God. We can do the same.

The Threat

Each one of these stories also presents us with a worldly consequence for not submitting to their will. What was it in each case.

In 1:10 we found that their heads would be endangered

In 3:6, and 19-23, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were cast into the fiery furnace. And I’m really intrigued by the details of this one. In the King’s wrath he has the furnace heated seven times more than it was wont to be heated and then he commanded his most mighty men to escort the boys to their execution. Yet, those men were the ones killed by the flames that Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were thrown into.

And in 6:16, Daniel was cast into the lion’s den.

To liken the scriptures in each of these cases, what might be some of the worldly consequences for not going along with the world. I’m afraid that there’s no guarantee that choosing the right is always going to lead to a positive worldly outcome for us. At least in the short term. The world doesn’t take too kindly to those who challenge it. It has its fiery furnaces and lion’s dens prepared for those who refuse to do its bidding. Now thank heavens that we live in a time when we usually won’t have to face many physical dangers or harm, but there are consequences, nonetheless. They may throw you into the fiery furnace of public ridicule. The lion’s den of unpopularity and ostracism. You may lose jobs, promotions, and opportunities. You may face bullying and loneliness, or discouragement. We’ve got to keep in mind our “but if not” principle. God can deliver us from these things, and in some cases he will. But not always. He won’t always protect us from the agency of others and the pains of life. And I’m sure that we can all think of examples of people in the scriptures that chose to stand up to the world and suffered for it. Think Abinadi. He stood up for what was right and was burned for it. Think Joseph Smith, he stood up for what was right and was shot. Joseph of Egypt did what was right in the case of Potiphar’s wife and ending up going to prison for years. Even though in the case of Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, they were delivered from those consequences, I’m afraid it would be false for me to teach that God will always do that kind of thing for us when we stand up and stand out. But what would be a true principle we could teach? That leads us to our final chart here:

The Results

What were the results or blessings that these boys received for choosing to stand for something.

In story #1 what verses and phrases show what God was willing to do for our four heroes. Before the whole food scenario came up, we learn that God had brought Daniel into favor and sympathy with his overseer. This would later pave the way for them to be allowed to run the 10-day experiment where they ate only vegetables and water. And then as a result of their experiment? In verse 15, they were fairer and fatter in flesh. Verse 17, They had great knowledge, skill in learning, wisdom, understanding. Verse 19 tells us that there was none like them and verse 20 that they were ten times better than all the rest.

What’s the latter-day equivalent of this? We, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ really do stand out to the rest of the world. In a physical sense and more importantly, a spiritual sense. Especially our youth. Our youth are so good. They are different. I believe that they are generally recognized as being happier, more responsible, more hard-working, more committed to values than any other group of similar-aged youth that are out there. They are sought after by employers and recognized by education and government. They’re not slaves to substance abuse. They’re clean cut and modest. They speak with clean language and have a sense of purpose and direction in their lives. I’ve always felt fortunate as a seminary teacher that I get to teach the best of the student body. Because of their obedience, there really are “none like them”, “ten times better than all the rest”.

In story #2. What happens to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah? Let’s actually read what happens from the scriptures in verses 24-27.

24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.

25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.

26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire.

27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.

Isn’t that powerful? God may not always deliver us from all our trials, but, if we stand up for what we believe, we will walk with Christ. He will not allow us to pass through our fiery furnaces alone. Christ will be with us, and support us, and give us strength. That’s a blessing that comes to all who stand for something. Like Isaiah said in Isaiah 43:2

2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

I like in verse 27 there, that when Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah come forth, that there’s nothing that is burned on them. Not even a hair was singed or even the smell of fire on them. I mean, you know what your clothes smell like after you’ve been sitting around the campfire for a while, right? Not even that. God can protect us to the uttermost. He doesn’t always deliver his servants, but when he does, he can do it in spectacular fashion. This is an example of the miraculous power of God. In a fire that is heated seven times more than usual, that is exceeding hot, that can kill the most mighty of men—with God’s protection, there is nary a singed hair or even the smell of smoke. Nothing is impossible with God.

Another outcome we could add from chapter 3. They were promoted. Lifted up in authority and power. I believe that God can do this for us as well.

In our third story, what happens to Daniel after he has been cast into the lion’s den? Verses 22-23

22 My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.

23 Then was the king exceedingly glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.

To liken the scriptures. God can send us angels too! He can deliver us from all kinds of dangers. He can deliver us from the lions of pain, the lions of trial and adversity. He can deliver us from the lions of sorrow, persecution, discouragement, hopelessness, and loneliness if we just put our trust in him. And perhaps most importantly, when we show our faith in him, Christ will always deliver us from the jaws of the adversary. Satan’s mouth will be shut up before us. We will not be consumed by the world or evil. We too can receive “no manner of hurt” upon us from that enemy of enemies.

TRUTH

All right, so I know that that was a lot, and this lesson may have to be taught in more than just one sitting. But if we take all the stories together, we could create one big, giant principle of truth here. Maybe we could word it something like this. If I resolve to refuse to partake what the world has to offer, refuse to do what the world thinks I should do, and refuse to stop doing what I know to be right, then I will stand out from the rest of the world, I will have the opportunity to walk with the Savior, I will be promoted, delivered, God will send me angels, and I am guaranteed to receive no manner of “spiritual” hurt.

LIKEN THE SCRIPTURES

Could you share an example of a time in your life when either you or someone you know stood for something regardless of the consequences? Either by not partaking of something the world had to offer, or refusing to do what the world demanded, or by doing something that the world did not want you or them to do?

As a teacher, I might consider sharing an example of your own of a time when you stood for something. For me, I might share the story of the time when some students in my computer class in high school were bringing up pornographic pictures on their screen, and I walked away. I didn’t want to participate in that. Or I might share the story of Elder L. Tom Perry drinking milk at business parties so that no one would even mistake him for drinking alcohol. That’s windows open obedience. Or the story of the time when one of my students walked out of the movie theater in front of all her friends. I’m sure there are many, many illustrations you could choose from. But be sure to give the majority of the time to allow your students to share their own examples.

CONCLUSION

And, boy, aren’t these stories in Daniel phenomenal! Especially for the youth because, they are about young people. These four fantastic young men are examples of youth that were able to live as disciples of Christ in a Babylonian world. I pray that we can be like them and do what they did, in our own way. Let’s stand for something! Regardless of the fiery furnaces and the lion’s dens of Babylon. The scriptures and the prophets promise, that if we can do this, though we be singled out for it, we will walk with Christ and angels and be delivered in the end.

NOTE:

Now those three stories are where I would choose to spend my time if it were limited to only a short lesson period or two. But there are some other principles you could teach if you had the time or felt your focus would be better spend there. I’m not going to give these principles the full treatment, but allow me to point them out to you, with a couple of ideas for teaching them and then allow you to flesh them out with your own inspiration and style.

THE ROLLING STONE

First, from Daniel chapter 2. The fantastic story of Daniel interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the great image. First of all, you may want to lead your students through the part of the story where Daniel is able to tell the king what his dream was about without him even revealing it, where the other magicians and astrologers of the king cannot. But the part that I feel has the most relevance to us in the latter-days is the substance of the dream itself. The dream of the great image knocked over and destroyed by the stone cut out of the mountain without hands which rolls forth, gaining speed and size until it fills the whole earth. Sometimes for an icebreaker, I will measure out a 14 by 14-foot square in the middle of my classroom and tell my students the story of the prophecy that Joseph Smith makes in the little log schoolhouse in Kirtland. I ask them to imagine Joseph making that prophecy when the entire priesthood leadership of the church could fit into a space that size. What was the prophecy? Wilford Woodruff describes what happened:

"On Sunday night the Prophet called on all who held the priesthood to gather into the little log schoolhouse they had there. It was a small house, perhaps 14 feet square. But it held the whole of the priesthood of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who were then in the town of Kirtland, and who had gathered together to go off in Zion's camp. That was the first time I ever saw Oliver Cowdery or heard him speak; the first time I ever saw Brigham Young and Heber C. Kimball, and the two Pratts, and Orson Hyde and many others. There were no apostles in the Church then except Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery. When we got together the Prophet called upon the elders of Israel with him to bear testimony of this work. Those that I have named spoke, and a good many that I have not named, bore their testimonies. When they got through the Prophet said: "Brethren I have been very much edified and instructed in your testimonies here tonight, but I want to say to you before the Lord, that you know no more concerning the destinies of the Church and kingdom than a babe upon its mother's lap. You don't comprehend it." I was rather surprised. He said: "It is only a little handful of priesthood you see here tonight, but this Church . . .[will fill the Rocky Mountains] . . . It will fill North and South America-it will fill the world."

Wilford Woodruff, Conference Report, p 57, April 8, 1898

Now, what an incredibly bold statement for Joseph to make under those circumstances. When the church was so small, to make a prophecy of global proportions is really quite something. Some might even say presumptuous. But he turned out to be prophetic, didn’t he.

What does this have to do with the Nebuchadnezzar’s dream? The different parts of the statue represent the different kingdoms and civilizations that would rule the ancient world. From top to bottom they symbolize the order of conquering civilizations in the old world. The golden head represented Babylon. The silver chest represented Persia that would take over the Babylonian kingdom within Daniel’s lifetime. The belly of brass would be Greece, the iron legs, Rome, and the feet of iron and clay would be the divided countries and nations of Europe and the world, really after the fall of Rome. But what was that rolling stone? What does it represent?

Daniel 2:44-45 tells us.

44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.

That stone represents the restored church and latter-day kingdom of Zion. In that sense, maybe they should have called the Church magazine “Rolling Stone” magazine. That would definitely be appropriate, but I’m afraid that’s already been taken by another industry. But that prophecy is certainly coming true. What started so small in 1830 has continued to grow exponentially since then. It’s a stone cut “without hands” because the Church of Jesus Christ was not created by the hands of men, but by God. And as the stone rolls and grows, there are only two reactions we can have to it. Either we become a part of it, in a kind of snowball effect, or we can be crushed by it.

And you know what I would really love to know. I would like to know what Joseph Smith saw that night. What was the vision he had of the church. Obviously, it extended far beyond those circumstances. Did he see our day? Was that what he was looking at? I wonder what would happen if Joseph came to my ward this Sunday and we held a testimony meeting. Maybe we would get up and testify of how amazing the progress of the church has been since his day. Maybe we would triumphantly testify of a conference center filled with priesthood holders, or 16 million members, or 300 temples, or 54,000 full-time missionaries, or the fact that we have congregations in 160 different countries worldwide. Now I’m not sure, but I just wonder if Joseph would then walk up to the pulpit and say, “Brethren and Sisters, I have been very much edified and instructed in your testimonies here today, but I want to say to you before the Lord, that you know no more concerning the destinies of the Church and kingdom than a babe upon its mother's lap. You don't comprehend it. This church will fill the world.” What did he see that night? Maybe far beyond what we can even fathom now. Did he see 50 million members? 500,000 missionaries? 1,000 temples? Congregations in every single country on the planet? I don’t know, but I imagine we would be very surprised if we could tap into that vision from that night in a little 14 by 14-foot log schoolhouse in the obscure town of Kirtland Ohio in 1834.

THE DEFINITION OF A PROPHET

I’d also like to share a brief insight from Daniel chapter 5 if I may. It contains some of the greatest descriptions of the role of a prophet anywhere. Allow me to point some of them out to you. This is from the story where Daniel interprets the writing on the wall written by heavenly fingers. And when the people are not able to understand the writing, the queen recalls Daniel’s ability to interpret heavenly things. And so she describes who Daniel is, and what he can do.

She says in verses 11-12.

11 There is a man in thy kingdom, in whom is the spirit of the holy gods; and in the days of thy father light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods, was found in him; whom the king Nebuchadnezzar thy father, the king, I say, thy father, made master of the magicians, astrologers, Chaldeans, and soothsayers;

12 Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called, and he will shew the interpretation.

You may want to teach your students that there is a man, and men in Salt Lake who, like Daniel

Have the spirit of the holy gods within them.

Who have light and understanding and wisdom, like the wisdom of the gods.

Who have excellent spirits

And knowledge and understanding.

Who can interpret dreams

Show hard sentences

And dissolve doubts

I especially like that last one. The prophets and apostles can dissolve our doubts. Therefore, since all these things are true, we can sustain them and turn to them for guidance and help. We can trust in their light, and understanding, and wisdom instead of the magicians, and astrologers, and soothsayers of the world.

THE SECOND COMING

One final note about the second half of the Book of Daniel. Chapters 7-12 contain Daniel’s visions of the last days and the Second Coming. They are very reminiscent of the imagery and symbolism that we find in the Book of Revelation and can be a bit difficult to interpret. In fact, we know that John the Beloved drew from the Book of Daniel when he wrote Revelation. We’re going to see more of this kind of prophesying in the writings of some of the latter prophets in the Old Testament and so perhaps we’ll come back to these chapters in Daniel when we cover their teachings. Ezekiel, too, has this kind of prophesying in his book which we didn’t cover last week. So I hope to help you with some of that material in a future lesson. But I assure you, it’s very interesting and very good. But with only one week in Daniel, I think the creators of the manual got it right by focusing on the first six chapters and that’s where I would encourage you to spend your time.