17 As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.18 At the end of the time, when the king had commanded that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. 19 And the king spoke with them, and among all of them none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore they stood before the king. 20 And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom. 21 And Daniel was there until the first year of King Cyrus. Daniel 1:17-21
Earlier in this chapter, in verse 5, we read that the period of time Daniel and his three friends spent in being re-educated by King Nebuchadnezzar was three years. In our verses above we see that God gave all four of them the ability to learn quickly and well. They were probably sixteen to eighteen years old when they were kidnapped, so now at the end of their training they would have been nineteen to twenty-one years old. They were about to face their “final exam” for their education. Failure meant death. Excellence meant opportunities to serve God in ways they had never dreamed possible.
We need to understand what this final exam looked like. King Nebuchadnezzar specifically ordered that they were to learn the ways of the Chaldeans – their history, religion, writings, culture, sciences, and so on. These four young men were supposed to be rid of all they had learned about God as well as all Hebrew culture in which they had been born. Did this mean that the young men had to lie to the king? No. It only meant that they had learned what the king wanted them to learn but had stayed true to their faith as well. We, too, can give the answers required for passing a course without adopting that information as truth if it is contrary to what the Bible tells us. By learning the culture the king had demanded, these four young men gained the wisdom to be able to tell God’s truth to people in this world through things the people would understand.
We can do the same today as we attend classes necessary for the career God is leading us into. We believe the Bible, learn what the classes teach, and then determine not to let the world’s knowledge change our minds about God’s wisdom. As we determine in our hearts ahead of time that we will not forsake what Jesus says in the Bible, He will guide us into truth just as God did with Daniel and his friends.
*What have you learned in classes that is different from what the Bible teaches? How can you use what you have learned to teach someone else the truth?
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