Daniel means God is judge. His Babylonian name was Belteshazzer meaning Bel protect his life. He was born in about 620BC and taken to Babylon after the siege of Jerusalem ended (it started in 605BC and by 597BC they had taken over Judah). He was probably 15 to 18 years old, when he was forced to leave. Daniel was both a prophet and a statesman who lived in Babylon for over 60 years, right into his eighties. When he was taken into captivity he started out as a young man of nobility who consistently rose to the top as he served under four or five different monarchies and administrations. Daniel 1:19-20 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom. After telling the king his dream and also interpreting it he was made an overseer over a province of Babylon (unusual for a foreigner) and also placed over the wisemen. He was also one of the three Satraps that ruled over the Persian Kingdom. In October 539 BCE, the Persian king Cyrus took Babylon, the ancient capital of an empire covering modern Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. In a broader sense, Babylon was the ancient world's capital of scholarship and science. All of this is significant because Daniel started out as a slave, just like Joseph. Imagine becoming like a governor or prime minister, yet you started out as a captive. Daniel was a prophet for Israel and of the nations of the world, with God giving him very significant visions of the future of the world. This type of success is not the norm, therefore, there are many leadership and character lessons we can gain from studying the life of Daniel.
