Enemies and Friends

We talked about the need for Christians to be the best they can be at what they do. That’s always true, but doubly so when living in Babylon. The truth is, though, it’s not going to help us avoid persecution. Our Lord deserves and requires that we serve him by doing our best in everything. Anything less than our best will dishonor the gospel and draw criticism from people who disapprove of us. But being our best may also draw attacks.

As we continue our Lessons from Babylon, we’ll look at how being the best drew targets on Daniel and the other faithful Jews.

Let’s return to Daniel 3, the account of Nebuchadnezzar’s golden idol. He erects this thing and commands that when the ridiculous pomp begins everyone must worship his statue as if it were a god. And everyone goes along, except Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, who quietly refused. What happened? Their coworkers “came forward and denounced the Jews” (3:8 NIV). The ESV renders it “maliciously accused”. The literal translation is “ate the pieces of.” That’s graphic. Their coworkers pounced on them. They devoured them. The king hadn’t noticed these three hadn’t bowed, but the other astrologers and wise men couldn’t wait to tell on them.

Daniel 6 tells a similar story:

Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. ... So these administrators and satraps went as a group to the king and said: “May King Darius live forever! The royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the decree that anyone who prays to any god or human being during the next thirty days, except to you, Your Majesty, shall be thrown into the lions’ den.” (6:1-2, 6-7)

Did you notice the lie? “The royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have all agreed ....” There was one who didn’t agree; he wasn’t even consulted. Daniel was targeted. And the king fell for it.

Our lesson from Babylon is thus: Our excellent work and character will cause the enemies of the gospel to hate us even more.

This shouldn’t surprise us. Jesus told us what would happen: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you” (John 15:18-19). When you hate someone for irrational reasons, the better they are, the more you hate them. Be prepared for this.

We have another lesson this time.

In chapter 3, Nebuchadnezzar was the one with the wicked plan, and our heroes suffered because of it. In chapter 6, Darius wasn’t trying to do anything particularly wicked that day; he got talked into it. And when the trap was sprung, he was unhappy:

“Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, Your Majesty, or to the decree you put in writing. He still prays three times a day.” When the king heard this, he was greatly distressed; he was determined to rescue Daniel and made every effort until sundown to save him. (6:13-14)

Darius liked and admired Daniel. He actually valued his character as much as his abilities. But he couldn’t save Daniel. The other government functionaries had arranged things so that even the king couldn’t undo this rule. This pagan was Daniel’s friend, but his hands were tied.

That’s our second lesson: Don’t expect your friends to save you from persecution.

It’s rare to count the most powerful person in the world as your personal friend. Our non-Christian friends will often not have the power necessary to save us. Our boss may be bound by company policy. We may run afoul of some kind of “zero tolerance” code at school. And in the modern world, if the internet mob descends on us, those we work for will be pressured to cave or be attacked, too. They’re only human, so they will not always be able to protect us.

Fortunately, we have a friend who isn’t merely human. He says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt 5:10). Our Lord knows when we are persecuted for his sake, and he will make it up to us one day.

So when the world turns on us because of our righteousness, let’s remember Peter’s counsel:

Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice inasmuch as you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you. ... If you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name (1Pet 4:12-16).

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