The Young Captives Part 12

"Most humbly will we all bow before our G.o.d, and pray that a clear revelation of the lost dream may be made on the mind of our beloved Daniel," said Azariah.

In solemn silence, the youths of Judah departed, and retired to their respective apartments, there to prostrate themselves before the Lord in humble devotion, with full confidence that the G.o.d in whom they trusted would hear their prayer and grant their pet.i.tion.

Many hours had already pa.s.sed away. Stillness prevailed throughout the thoroughfares of the great metropolis. Silence reigned throughout Babylon. The faithful night guardians solemnly paraded the streets in the performance of their important duties. The queen of cities was hushed to repose; its vast thousands had, for a while, forgotten their toil and sorrow. Old midnight was left far in the rear, and some faint signs in the eastern skies betokened the distant approach of day. But yonder, on their bended knees, see the trembling forms of Amon.o.ber's children! For many hours they have wrestled with G.o.d. Does He hear them? But where is Daniel? Let us silently enter his chamber. The son of Baramon is asleep!

Mark his countenance!

Still the three brothers, "with their faces toward Jerusalem," are bowed before the Lord. But hark! Ah! it is the well-known voice of Daniel. It rings melodiously throughout every apartment and it falls on the ears of the cousins. Hark!

"Blessed be the name of G.o.d forever and ever, for wisdom and might are his. And he changeth the times and seasons. He removeth and setteth up kings. He giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that seek understanding. He revealeth deep and secret things. He knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him. I thank Thee and praise Thee, O G.o.d of my fathers, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of Thee; for Thou hast made known to us now the king's matter."

Early in the morning, Daniel sought an interview with Arioch, and besought the reversing of the sentence against the wise men, and a.s.sured him that he was fully prepared to appear before the king, and restore to him the lost vision.

"Let Belteshazzar be a.s.sured," said the captain of the guard, "that I shall not move a finger against the wise men but by the positive orders of the king, and I am happy to say that he hath ordered me to delay execution until I receive further directions. I have just learned by chance that the merchant Joram has had an interview with the king in behalf of thee and thy friends. If I can be of any service to Belteshazzar, I am at his pleasure."

"In one hour, then, I will call on thee again, and thou shalt accompany me into the presence of the king," and Daniel departed.

Daniel found his companions sunk into calm slumber, from which they were not then awakened. He partook of a slight repast, bowed once more in adoration before G.o.d, and returned to seek Arioch, the captain of the guard.

They were soon on their way to the palace. Arioch first entered.

"O king, live forever! Belteshazzar is without, desiring to see thee; and--"

"No more from thee at this time," interrupted the king. "Retire, and send the young man hither."

The officer, well used to the manner of his sovereign, bowed low and retired.

"Belteshazzar," said Arioch, "thou are admitted; and may the G.o.ds give thee success."

With a firm step, and a calm look, and with full confidence in the G.o.d of Israel, the Hebrew youth once more marched into the presence of the King of Chaldea.

"Belteshazzar," cried the king, "art thou able to make known unto me the dream which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof?"

"The secret which the king demandeth of his servant is far above the knowledge and comprehension of all his wise men, astrologers, magicians, and soothsayers. But the G.o.d of heaven--that Jehovah who dwelleth in light--he revealeth secrets, and maketh known to the king, Nebuchadnezzar, what shall come to pa.s.s in the latter days. Be it known, therefore, to the king, that this secret is not revealed to me through any wisdom that I have more than any living, but it is the kind interposition of Jehovah in behalf of thy servant and his companions in tribulation, who are doomed to die; and, moreover, to show the king that Jehovah is the only G.o.d.

"Thy dream, and the vision of thy head, are these: As for thee, O king, thy thoughts came into thy mind upon thy bed, what should come to pa.s.s hereafter; and He that revealeth secrets maketh known to thee the grand events of the future.

"Thou, O king, sawest a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee, and the form thereof was terrible. This image's head was of fine gold, his breast and arms of silver, his belly and thighs of bra.s.s, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay. Thou sawest that a stone smote the image upon the feet which were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Then was the iron, the clay, the bra.s.s, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloor, and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them; and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. This is the dream. Now, O king, listen to the interpretation thereof.

"Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the G.o.d of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, strength, and glory; and wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field, and the fowls of the heaven, hath he given unto thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold. And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee; and another third kingdom of bra.s.s, which shall bear rule over the earth. And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron, forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things; and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise. And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potter's clay and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided, but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron; forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly broken. And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay. And in the days of these kings shall the G.o.d of heaven set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and this kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever. Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the bra.s.s, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great G.o.d hath made known to the king what shall come to pa.s.s hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure."

For a while the king, in silent astonishment, gazed on the wonderful being before him; then he arose and fell prostrate at the feet of the captive Hebrew, and paid him adoration suitable only to a divine being.

"Let thy adoration be paid to Jehovah, O king!" cried Daniel, "for it is he that revealeth secrets, and bringeth to light the hidden mysteries."

"Of a truth, your G.o.d is a G.o.d of G.o.ds," cried the king, "and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this mystery. And now, Belteshazzar, thou art exalted to be a ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Chaldea; and if thou desirest any particular favor, let it not be hidden from the king; for thou art worthy of all honors, and the full desire of thy heart shall be given thee."

"For himself, thy servant has nothing to ask; but be it known to thee, O king, that thou art as much indebted for the restoration of the vision to my three companions as to thy servant, for in answer to our united prayers the secret was made known. I pray thee, therefore, that while I am thus honored, my companions may share in it."

"Wisely remarked. Thy three companions shall be promoted to posts of honor and trust in the empire. Let them, under thee, preside over the province of Babylon."

Thus Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, through the miraculous interposition of that Jehovah they loved, and whose law they honored, were elevated to be the chief personages in the Chaldean empire.

CHAPTER XVII.

YEARS pa.s.sed by, and uninterrupted success attended the reign of the king of Babylon. The aggrandizement of the city was without a parallel in history. It appeared to have become the leading pa.s.sion of the monarch's mind. The reader may have a faint idea of the glory of the city when he remembers that it was a regular square, forty-five miles in compa.s.s, enclosed by a wall two hundred feet high, and fifty broad, in which there were one hundred gates of bra.s.s. Its princ.i.p.al ornaments were the Temple of Belus, and the famous "hanging gardens."

The Temple of Belus was most remarkable for a prodigious tower that stood in the midst of it. According to Herodotus, it was a square, of a furlong on each side--that is, half a mile in the whole compa.s.s; and according to Strabo, it was a furlong in height. It consisted of eight towers, built one above the other; and because it decreased gradually towards the top, Strabo calls the whole a pyramid. It is not only a.s.serted, but proved, that this tower far exceeded the greatest of the pyramids of Egypt in height.

The ascent to the top was by stairs round the outside. Over the whole, on the top of the tower, was an observatory, by means of which the Babylonians became more expert in astronomy than any other nation, and made, in a short time, the great progress in it ascribed to them in history.

In addition to these magnificent works, the public buildings of Babylon were counted by thousands, and its splendid mansions by tens of thousands.

The four Hebrews still continued in power, and more than retained their former excellence. Daniel was highly esteemed by the king for his great wisdom and skill in the affairs of government; but the impressions of the superiority of Jehovah, made upon the monarch's mind at the interpretation of the dream, had well-nigh been obliterated. Pride rebelled against the thought of the future overthrow of the empire; and fain would he have persuaded himself that uneasiness brought about by a troublesome dream was unworthy of him.

The three brothers, in their spheres, performed their duties with a degree of perfection and exact.i.tude that greatly pleased the king; and for this, more than on account of their genuine excellence, were they regarded by him in a favorable light. Those pleasing qualities so apparent in the earlier history of the king were fast disappearing, to give way to pride, vanity, peevishness, and even cruelty.

The bold and impetuous declaration of the king, in regard to the sovereignty of the G.o.d of Israel, and the peculiar circ.u.mstances under which the poor Hebrews were promoted, were far from being forgotten by the Babylonians. There was a deep and abiding dissatisfaction in the minds of thousands in the realm, not so much on account of the elevation of the Hebrews, as on account of the conviction that the sovereign was not a sincere worshiper of the G.o.ds of the empire. The king, by occasional remarks from his n.o.bles, had noticed more than once that there was something in their language that indicated a lack of confidence in his fidelity to the G.o.ds. Nebuchadnezzar, notwithstanding his increasing vanity, was far from being indifferent to the estimation in which he was held by his subjects. He knew that his safety was based on the confidence and friendship of his people, and he was determined, if by his former professions he had unwisely magnified the G.o.d of Daniel, and thereby lost the confidence of his Chaldean subjects, to give them unmistakable proof that he still was a worshiper at the shrine of Belus.

Summoning Belrazi, one of his most trusted officers, to his side, the king said:

"From the nature of thy position, thou art called to mingle in very numerous circles, and no man at the palace is better qualified than thou to judge of the feelings of the subjects toward their king. Come, now, be frank and plain with thy sovereign, and tell me how I stand in the estimation of my n.o.bles."

"O king, live for ever!" replied the officer, highly delighted with this unusual mark of the king's confidence. "Thou livest in the warm affections of thy n.o.bles, and in the pure regard of all thy numerous subjects. Thou art the peculiarly favored of the G.o.ds. All the nations of the earth fear thee, and pay their homage at thy feet."

"True. But art thou not aware that on one point my subjects are not as fully satisfied with their king as they might be? Behold, I have placed unusual confidence in my servant, and in return the king requireth equal sincerity."

"As thy soul liveth, O king, I shall hide nothing from thee. In mingling with thy n.o.bles, I find that, without distinction, they are abundantly loyal. In a very few instances I have heard language that indicated that my lord the king was favorably inclined toward the G.o.d of the Hebrews, and less ardent in his devotion to the G.o.ds of Chaldea. But in this, has not my lord the king the perfect right to do as seemeth good in his sight?"

"The King of Babylon can do as seemeth good in his sight; and it shall seem good in his sight, not many days hence, to give abundant proof that the G.o.ds of Chaldea are the G.o.ds of the king. I am well satisfied with thy words. Let this interview, and others of the same nature which we may have, remain a secret. Thou mayest now leave, and to-morrow at the third hour be punctual to meet me again at this apartment."

The dignitary retired, and the king was left alone in his apartment.

"My suspicions were well founded! And, indeed, have they had no cause?

Well, I was then young, and without experience. But was not the recovery of that dream a wonderful thing? Will anyone dare deny that? Had the G.o.d of Belteshazzar nothing to do with it? Again my thoughts are on the G.o.d of Israel! 'Tis hard to banish it from my mind! The interpretation was natural, and perfectly consistent. But I swear by the G.o.ds, that it shall not come to pa.s.s! I will establish my empire on such a sure foundation that it shall not be in the power of mortals to shake it. Are not the nations at my command? Are not my armies stationed on every sh.o.r.e? Is not Babylon the terror of kings? Ah! where is the power that can compete with Chaldea? My n.o.bles are jealous of my fidelity to the G.o.ds. Yea, truly, and have I not given them reason?

"This must go no further. If I have some lingering fears of the G.o.d of Belteshazzar, it must not be made manifest. In this I must regain the full confidence of the nation. Are they jealous of the four Hebrews? In this I fear them not. They are worth more to my empire than any chosen score of their fellow-officers. And of the wisdom of my wise men--is not more than one half of it centered in Belteshazzar? If they are envious of these young men, let it not be known to the king, or by the powers of Belus I will let them feel my vengeance!

"But for the king to be suspected of being a believer in their G.o.d is of a more serious nature. What measure shall I resort to in order to satisfy the mind of the nation? Deny the insinuation in a proclamation? Shall the King of Babylon ever stoop to this? Never! Something more consistent with royal dignity than this must be found. An image? Yea! That will do, O king! Thou hast well thought. An image of Bel. What? 'With the head of gold, the breast and arms of silver, the belly and thighs of bra.s.s, the legs of iron, the feet of iron and clay?' Nay! The image of Bel which I shall set up for public worship, shall be all of gold. Why otherwise? My wealth is inexhaustible. Who, after such a display, would ever suspect the King of Babylon of adhering to the G.o.d of the Hebrews? This, then, is my purpose. I shall build a great image of Bel, made of pure gold, and set it up in some favorable spot, and appoint a day for its public dedication."

The next morning, at the appointed hour, Belrazi was punctual to meet the king at his apartment. The monarch, well pleased with his scheme of the image, manifested a pleasant countenance.

"Thou art punctual, Belrazi. The king is well pleased to meet thee. Thy frank sincerity yesterday was an additional proof of thy worth. I have seen fit, since we parted, to bestow some thought on the subject on which we conversed. It is of the utmost importance to the well-being and security of the empire that the people have unbounded confidence in their king in all things--in matters of religion as well as in matters of state.

Now, in order to expel all doubts from the minds of my n.o.bles in regard to my fidelity to the G.o.ds of my fathers, I have thought of a measure which, I trust, must prove successful. It is this: Let an image of our G.o.d Bel be made of gold. Let it be of large dimensions, and far superior to any image heretofore seen in any country. Let it be set up in some favorable spot; and on the day of its dedication, let all who hold office under the government, be commanded, by a royal decree, to appear on the spot, and, at the appointed hour, fall down and worship it; and let the penalty of disobedience be death. Let those who dare set at naught the will of the king be taken and thrown into the burning fiery furnace. What thinkest Belrazi of this?"

"O king, live forever! Thy goodness is unbounded. Thy design is dictated by that wisdom that cometh from the G.o.ds. The measure shall be hailed throughout the empire with shouts of rejoicing, and the day of its dedication will be a day of days in the future history of Chaldea."

"Let no time be lost, then," replied the king. "Let my head goldsmith be called, and from the lips of the king let him receive instructions in regard to the making of the image. This is my desire. Let the measure be known but to a few, until the proclamation shall go forth."