Agents of Babylon Contents Study Guide Questions 1. The Hostage Daniel 1:1-21 p.1 2. The Insomniac Daniel 2:1-30 p.5 3. The Colossus Daniel 2:31-49 p.7 4. The Fire Men Daniel 3:1-30 p.11 5. The Wolf-Man Daniel 4:1-37 p.14 6. The Fingers of God Daniel 5:1-31 p.17 7. The Lion King Daniel 6:1-28 p.20 8. The Conqueror Daniel 8:1-8, 15-22 p.24 9. The Madman Daniel 8:9-14, 23-27 p.27 10. The Herald Daniel 9:1-27 p.31 11. The Archangel Daniel 10-11 p.34 12. The End Daniel 12:1-13 p.38 Agents of Babylon Lesson 1 – The Hostage 1. Read 2 Kings 23:36-24:7 1a. How old was Jehoiakim (Daniel 1:1) when he began to reign over Judah? How long did he reign as king? (verse 23:36) 1b. How was his reign characterized? (verse 37) 1c. Why did Nebuchadnezzar attack Jerusalem in the third year of Jehoiakim’s reign? (Daniel 1:1, 2 Kings 24:1-2) 1d. Why did God send armies to besiege Jerusalem and Judah? (verses 3-4) 1 1e. What had King Manasseh of Judah (four kings prior to Jehoiakim) done that warranted the destruction of Judah? (2 Kings 21:11-12, 22:17, 23:26-27; Jeremiah 15:3-4) 1f. What did Jehoiakim himself do? (2 Kings 24:4, Jeremiah 26:20-21) 1g. What kind of death did Jeremiah predict for King Jehoiakim? (Jeremiah 22:18-19) 2. Read Leviticus 25:1-7. 2a. What was the ordinance concerning the Promised Land–the earth itself? (verse 1-5) 2b. How were the people to live during the seventh year? (verse 6) 2 2c. What did God promise would happen to the land if the Israelites did not walk in His ways? (Leviticus 26:33-35) 2d. How long did Jeremiah say the captivity would last? (Jeremiah 25:11-12) 2e. What benefit did the land gain from the captivity? (2 Chronicles 36:21) 2f. What insight about “rest” do you find in the Sabbath rest ordinance for the land? If the land needs rest what about people? (Exodus 20:8-11) 3. How did Daniel and his friends carry out all four of the admonitions in 1 Corinthians 16:13? 3a. watch 3 3b. stand fast in the faith 3c. be brave 3d. be strong 4. How does Daniel’s commitment to his beliefs, as a teenager, inspire you to be prepared for the challenges of your faith? 4 Agents of Babylon Lesson 2 – The Insomniac 1. What role does God play in who governs the kingdoms of this world? (Daniel 2:21) 1a. How was this truth revealed again to Nebuchadnezzar in another dream? (Daniel 4:17) 1b. Why was this a message Nebuchadnezzar needed to hear? (Daniel 4:28-30) 1c. What did it take for Nebuchadnezzar to learn this truth? (Daniel 4:32) 1d. Why does this message apply to all men instead of just kings? (Psalm 75:6-7) 5 1e. How can these truths bring comfort to Christians in a world filled with geo-political maneuverings? 2. Read Daniel 2:13-25. 2a. Why did Daniel feel confident praying for God’s help? (verse 13,18) 2b. How does Daniel describe God’s sovereignty over kings and authorities? (verses 17- 19, 21, 23) 2c. How is God sovereign over counselors and advisors? (verse 20) 2d. How do verses 24-25 describe Nebuchadnezzar – unable to understand his own dreams? 6 Agents of Babylon Lesson 3 – The Colossus 1. What is the irony found in Nebuchadnezzar having a biblical account of kingdoms falling being revealed to him? 2. From the dream, what lesson can be learned regarding God’s sovereignty? 3. From what you learned from the lesson; how would you define “the times of the Gentiles”? (Luke 21:24) 3a. What does Paul say God is doing to Israel during this time? (Romans 10:19; 11:11; Deuteronomy 32:21) 3b. What eventually will happen with Israel? (Romans 11:25-27) 7 3c. How long has God made this promise to Israel? (Psalm 130:8; Isaiah 59:20-21) 3d. What does “the times of the Gentiles” say about the faithfulness of God to Israel? 3e. What should this mean to you in spite of your circumstances at times? (2 Timothy 2:13) 4. The colossal image that Nebuchadnezzar saw in his dream foretold what kingdoms? 5. How does understanding Nebuchadnezzar’s image and the “stone out of the mountain without hands” that destroyed it, help you better understand Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:10? 5a. Who is the “stone”? 8 5b. What part do we play as Christians in the growth of God’s kingdom until it is established on earth? 5c. How does Paul picture our present time as we wait on the establishment of God’s kingdom? (Romans 8:19-23) 5d. How can you identify with the “groaning” of creation that longs for the realization of God’s kingdom? 6. What evidence do you see in our world of the futility of human “kingdoms” and nations? 6a. How has America experienced a rise in power and a decline in values at the same time? 6b. Why do great power and weak values create a dangerous combination for any “kingdom”? 9 7. In Daniel 2:47, by what names does Nebuchadnezzar refer to Daniel’s God? 10 Agents of Babylon Lesson 4 – The Fire Men Read Jeremiah 10: 3-9 1a. Why does Jeremiah use the word “futile” to describe the making of an idol? (verse 3) 1b. In terms of communication from one’s “god”, what is the main problem with an idol? (verse 5) 1c. Explain Jeremiah’s words: “A wooden idol is a worthless doctrine.” (verse 8) 2. How was the challenge for Daniel and his friends in Babylon similar to the challenge we face in modern cultures in terms of obedience to laws? 2a. What did the three Hebrew men do when the king’s command violated their faith? (Daniel 3:18) 2b. What should a Christian do today when a government’s law violates their faith in God? 11 2c. How did Peter and the apostles answer that question in first-century Jerusalem? (Acts 4:19; 5:29) 2d. How was the response of the three Hebrew men similar to Peter and John’s? 2e. What specific command of God were the three Hebrew men being asked to violate? (Exodus 20:4-6) 2f. What precedent did they have to go by in terms of God’s response to violating this commandment? (Exodus 32:1-10) 3. Why is it important to decide what your moral and spiritual boundaries are before you are faced with the “flames” of challenges to your faith? 12 3a. Have you set those boundaries in your own life? 3b. What would you have said to the king if you had been in the place of the three Hebrew men? 4. What assurance can you gain from knowing that the One in the fire with the three men was the Lord? 13 Agents of Babylon Lesson 5 – The Wolf-Man 1. What other things are grouped with “a proud look” in Proverbs 6:16-19? 1a. What would “a proud look” or “haughty eyes’ say about a person? (v. 17) 1b. What does it say about pride that it is grouped with wickedness and evil? 1c. Why was pride possibly at the root of the very first sin? (Genesis 3:5) 1d. On what occasions do you find yourself tempted to feel, if not speak and act, prideful in a sinful way? 1e. Is there a difference between being “proud” of something and being “prideful”? When is the line crossed? 14 1f. What did Nebuchadnezzar’s pride cost him? How could the same thing happen over time to us? 2. How is the image in Matthew 3:10 comparable to the image of the tree in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream? (Daniel 4:23) 2a. Compare the tree described in Jeremiah 17:7-8 with the heart described in the next verse (verse 9). How do these verses illustrate what happened to Nebuchadnezzar in his downfall? 2b. How can we prevent that downward cycle in our lives? (Jeremiah 17:7) How does that reflect where Nebuchadnezzar ended up? (Daniel 4:34-35) 2c. How can the “pride of your heart” deceive a person? (Jeremiah 49:16; Obadiah 3) 15 3. How does Proverbs 16:18 describe Nebuchadnezzar’s experience? 3a. When does the “fall” (Proverbs 16:18) from pride happened? Nebuchadnezzar’s happened twelve months after his prophetic dream. How might that lull us into complacency? 3b. How was that twelve-month delay actually a form of mercy toward Nebuchadnezzar? Why should we not take advantage of God’s mercy? 3c. Nebuchadnezzar was a prideful, pagan king. How do we know God will also discipline us if pride becomes a problem? (Hebrews 12:5-13) 16 Agents of Babylon Lesson 6 – The Fingers of God 1. Read Esther 1:2-3, 9, and Daniel 5:1-4. What cultural boundaries did Belshazzar violate on this night of feasting and revelry? 2. Belshazzar could be found to be intoxicated by: 2a. 2b. 2c. 3. What familiar cultural expressions do we use today that originated in the following verses? 3a. Daniel 5:5, 3b. Galatians 6:7, 3c. Matthew 5:41, 3d. Matthew 16:3, 3e.