THE EDUCATION OF DANIEL.
THE Bible is treated fairly, and is given its true place in
education, only when it is confidently held to be distinctly an educational book as such:
only when it is held to have clearly an educational purpose, and to be positively committed
to the principle of a complete education as such.That the Bible is all this is
abundantly proved by the contents of the Book itself.In order to cause this to
be seen most fully, and yet to do it in the briefest space, we shall approach
the subject through the book that is in more than one point a pivotal book in
the Bible -- the book of Daniel.The book of Daniel was written
especially for the last days; for when Daniel came to explain to King Nebuchadnezzar
the great things of the king's dream, he said that God "maketh known to
the King Nebuchadnezzar what shall be in the latter days." Dan. 2:28.
In explaining to Daniel the things revealed, the angel said that
he was giving understanding of what should befall God's people "in the
latter days." Dan. 10:14. And when the writing of the book was finished,
Daniel was commanded to "shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the
time of the end" (Dan. 12:4); and was then told, "Go thy way, Daniel;
for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end" (Verse
9). The book of Daniel, then, being specifically designed for the last days,
contains principles, as well as prophecies, which are of special importance,
and have a special bearing, in the last days; and not the least of these are
the principles of education. These principles are given to save the people of
the world in the last days from calamities and destruction of which those that
came upon Babylon are but a feeble representation. To ignore these principles,
given especially for this time, is but to court a destruction as much more
dreadful than that other as world-wide destruction and eternal ruin are greater
than local destruction and temporal ruin. When Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon
captured Jerusalem the first time, "the king spake unto Ashpenaz the
master of his eunuchs, that he should bring certain of the children of Israel
and of the king's seed and of the princes; children in whom was no blemish, but
well favored, and skilful in all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding
science, and such as had ability in them to stand in the king's palace, and whom they might teach the learning and the tongue of the
Chaldeans." Dan. 1:3, 4. "No blemish" and "well
favored." This would require that they should be physically sound, well
built, and symmetrical. The words translated "wisdom,"
"knowledge," and "science," in verse 4 -- Hebrew
daath, madda, and chokmah -- are closely related, though the
second is an extension of the first, and the third an extension of the second. The
word translated "wisdom" signifies "knowledge, understanding,
and intelligence." It implies the faculty to discern what is valuable
knowledge, and the ability and capacity to acquire such knowledge. The word translated
"knowledge" relates to "the mind or thought," and implies knowledge
acquired by thinking and application. The word translated "science"
signifies "skill, dexterity, sagacity, shrewdness, ability to judge;"
and is well translated in our word "science," which signifies
"skilful in knowledge." It implies a selected and systematized
knowledge. Therefore the requirement of King Nebuchadnezzar in the selecting of
these youth was that they should be physically sound and symmetrically built;
and that, mentally,
they should be --
1. Skilful in discerning what is valuable knowledge, and skilful
in the ability to
acquire such knowledge;
2. Cunning in the acquisition of knowledge by thinking and
application; and --
3. Understanding how to correlate, classify, and systematize the
knowledge which
they had the faculty to discern was valuable knowledge, and
which they were cunning in gathering. And they must have "ability" in all these
things. What they knew was not to be mere head-knowledge; but they must have the faculty of
observation and adaptation so trained that what they had learned could be practically applied
in their experience in every-day affairs. They were to have such ability, such
every-day common sense, as would enable them to use their knowledge to practical advantage
in the common things of daily life, so that they would be practical men wherever they
were; so that they could adapt themselves to any circumstances or situation, and be the
master and not the slave of either circumstances or situation.
From the specifications distinctly made in the scripture, and
from the close and thorough examination that must be passed, it is certain that all
that we have outlined was comprehended in the requirements of the king respecting the
youth who were to be chosen. And this is no small tribute to the educational ideas of
King Nebuchadnezzar. Indeed, his views of education, as shown in this verse of the
Bible, were, for all practical purposes, far in advance of the educational system that prevails
to-day, even in the leading colleges and universities of the United States. Yet Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were able successfully
to pass such an examination. Where, then, did they get such an education,
being, as they were, but mere youth? The answer to this question is worth having.
Besides, we need it just now; for all this was written especially for the last days. Where,
then, did Daniel and his three companions obtain the education which enabled
them successfully to pass the examination required by King Nebuchadnezzar? Where
did they obtain an education which made them "skilful in all wisdom, and
cunning in knowledge, and understanding science;" and which gave them
"ability" in all these things? -- Without hesitation it can be
answered, In a "school of the prophets," the divinely-established
schools in Israel. There was at that time a "college," or
"school of the prophets," in Jerusalem. For in the eighteenth year of
Josiah, king of Judah, which was only fifteen years before the captivity of
Daniel, there is the clear record of such a school in Jerusalem. In the eighteenth year, of Josiah, while at his command the
temple was being cleansed and repaired from the abominations of Manasseh and
Amen, a copy of the Pentateneh, or "book of the law of the Lord of Moses,"
was found by Hilkiah the priest.
Hilkiah "delivered the book to Shaphan" the scribe;
and "Shaphan carried the book to the king," and "read it before the king." "And
it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the law, that he rent his clothes," and commanded
Hilkiah the priest, and Shaphan the scribe, and others, "Go, inquire of the Lord
for me, and for them that are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that is
found." "And Hilkiah, and they that the king had appointed, went to
Huldah the prophetess. . . . Now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college
[margin, "in the school"]; and they spoke to her to that effect." Here was, in Jerusalem,
a college, or school, in which "dwelt" the prophetess. This at once
shows this school to have been a school of the prophets; because that which gave
to those schools the name schools of the Prophets was the fact that a prophet
dwelt with the school, and was, under God, the head of the school. This
fact is revealed in the two other instances in which they are mentioned: in 1 Sam.
19:20 "the company of the prophets" was seen, and "Samuel
standing as appointed over them." In 2 Kings 6:1-6 we meet again "the
sons of the prophets," and Elisha the prophet is dwelling with them; for
they said to Elisha, "The place where we dwell with thee is too strait for
us." Thus we find three schools of the prophets in three widely-separated
ages, -- the age of Samuel, the age of Elisha, and the age of Josiah, -- and in
each instance a prophet is dwelling in the school. These three passages were
written to give us information as to the schools of the prophets. They show why
these schools were called schools of the prophets. They show also that the
college, or school, in Jerusalem, in which dwelt Huldah the prophetess, was a school of the prophets as certainly as was
the school where dwelt Elisha the prophet or Samuel the prophet. It was, then, in a
school of the prophets, in the Lord's school, and in the system of education of
the Lord's designing, where Daniel and his three companions obtained the education
of which we read in Dan. 1:4, -- the education which made them "skilful in
all wisdom, and cunning in knowledge, and understanding science," and
which gave to them such "ability" in all these that they were able to
pass successfully the examination required
for entrance into the royal university of Babylon.
Written by
Testimonies
for the Church
Volume Six
Ellen G. White
1901
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