Jesus in the Old Testament is a series of posts that will offer my readers a chance to consider pictures or shadows of Jesus in the Old Testament. As mentioned in the introduction to this series, some may be obvious, some may be not so obvious, and some may simply be a facet of the Lord those reading may not have considered previously.
I hope as we venture through this series, we will see the Lord in many wonderful pictures throughout the Old Testament.
SEEING JESUS IN
Daniel
A man of prayer
Daniel 6:10 When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.
Luke 22:39 And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him.
Luke 22:40 And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.”
Luke 22:41 And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed,
Both men prayed.
This may not be a specific picture of Jesus found in Daniel, but it is a common thread throughout the Word, that when great trial or trouble is confronting the saint, a posture of prayer in kneeling is often defaulted to.
Both men kneeled down in prayer.
Yes, there are times when particular saints in the Word are confronted by the pre-incarnate Son of God, and they fall to thier face, but by far the common position is that of kneeling before the Lord.
Daniel, once he knew he was condemned, and that the help of any man was not available, resorted to the Lord in an open display of piety. You see, the very position of kneeling provided evidence that Daniel was resorting to prayer to all who witnessed his act of defiance. He may as well have went to the roof top and screamed that he still believed in God and it wouldn’t have been as obvious as his humble act of kneeling before his window, praying to his God.
Jesus also, as He brought his disciples to the garden, prayed openly before them, kneeling in posture, reaching out to His Father, exhibiting to those with Him his trust in God.
Both men prayed, openly, before witnesses, in a kneeling position, to seek the God of Israel prior to their death, and to give witness to those around of thier dependence on the God of Israel.
And both men entered their experience of death, strengthened by this pracitce of prayer.
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