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God's Word for You
Daniel For You: For reading, for feeding, for leading
We live in difficult times to be people who obey God and worship him alone. How can we be confident under pressure and faithful in the fire?
In this readable, accessible, exciting volume walking through one of the best-loved books of the Bible, David Helm shows how Daniel and his friends learned how to live in Babylon, far from their home in God's land—and how we can do the same.
In this readable, accessible, exciting volume walking through one of the best-loved books of the Bible, David Helm shows how Daniel and his friends learned how to live in Babylon, far from their home in God's land—and how we can do the same.
258 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 7, 2015
90 people are currently reading
152 people want to read
About the author
David R. Helm
27 books40 followersDavid R. Helm, along with Arthur Jackson, serves as Lead Pastor of the Hyde Park Congregation of Holy Trinity Church Chicago. David is Chairman of The Charles Simeon Trust, a ministry devoted to equipping men in expository preaching.
A graduate of Wheaton College and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, David is ordained in the PCA and serves on the council of The Gospel Coalition. He authored I, II Peter and Jude in Crossway’s Preaching the Word series, and contributed to Preach the Word:Essays in Expository Preaching in Honor of Kent Hughes. In addition, David has written The Big Picture Story Bible, One to One Bible Reading and The Genesis Factor (the latter with Jon Dennis). His forthcoming book on preaching is titled Expositional Preaching: How we speak God's Word Today which will be released in April of 2014.
David and his wife, Lisa, have five children (Noah, Joanna, who is married to Ben Panner, Baxter, Silas and Mariah) and reside in the Hyde Park neighborhood.
A graduate of Wheaton College and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, David is ordained in the PCA and serves on the council of The Gospel Coalition. He authored I, II Peter and Jude in Crossway’s Preaching the Word series, and contributed to Preach the Word:Essays in Expository Preaching in Honor of Kent Hughes. In addition, David has written The Big Picture Story Bible, One to One Bible Reading and The Genesis Factor (the latter with Jon Dennis). His forthcoming book on preaching is titled Expositional Preaching: How we speak God's Word Today which will be released in April of 2014.
David and his wife, Lisa, have five children (Noah, Joanna, who is married to Ben Panner, Baxter, Silas and Mariah) and reside in the Hyde Park neighborhood.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
September 8, 2020
Excellent. The most consistently helpful of the Daniel commentaries I've used while preaching through Daniel.
May 5, 2016
Once again, I have been edified by this series of commentaries, God's Word for You. They offer such good insight into understanding God's Word in bite size chunks that make it very doable and readable for every Christian (especially a busy mom like myself :). This look at Daniel helped me to understand the historical and apocalyptic nature of Daniel in a deeper way. While I feel the author took a bit of liberty at times in his interpretation, I did enjoy it a lot overall.
April 19, 2025
The Biblical Daniel was a young man, probably a teenager, when he and others were taken captive and exiled to Babylon. He ended up spending his entire life in exile. The first six chapters of the book of Daniel show him and his friends living for God in an atmosphere that’s foreign to them and their beliefs. The last six chapters share visions and messages given to Daniel that reach far into the future, even to end times.
In Daniel for You, David Helm posits that, though God gave His people into the Babylonians’ hands as punishment for their disobedience and idolatry, He had additional purposes in mind.
Daniel and three of his friends were among those chosen to be educated, assimilated into Babylonian culture, and taken into the king’s service. They were given Babylonian names. One of their first challenges came with the food apportioned to them.
Daniel felt that eating the king’s food would be defiling to him. Helm shares different reasons that might be the case, among them the possibilities that the food violated Israel’s dietary laws, or possibly had been offered to Babylonian idols. But Daniel doesn’t rail against this requirement. He very respectfully asks the person in charge of them if they could eat vegetables and water for ten days and see how they fared. At the end of that time, Daniel and his three friends “were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king’s food” (Daniel 1:15). So the steward let them eat what they wanted.
This set the tone for the rest of Daniel’s interactions. He never seemed hateful or bitter. He seemed to genuinely care about the king when he had bad news to deliver.
In addition, Daniel was faithful to God, praying three times a day toward Jerusalem, even when threatened with the lion’s den for doing so.
Besides the famous lion’s den story, Daniel contains the account of his three friends who were threatened with the fiery furnace for not bowing down to the king’s statue. Their famous words continue to encourage us in our day: “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up” (3:17-18).
And then there’s Nebuchadnezzar’s fall from pride to live like an animal for seven years, until he acknowledges God and is restored to sanity and to his kingdom.
To a mother, Daniel is an encouraging example that young people can live in an ungodly culture and not be taken in by it: they can be “in the world and not of it,” and even more, be a testimony to it.
Daniel is also a stellar example of standing faithful to God in a way that is not condescending or demeaning to those who don’t believe as he does.
The second half of Daniel’s book is what Helm calls apocalyptic literature, which he defines as “an unveiling–a pulling back of the curtain on the unseen transcendent world and its role in bringing this present world to an end (p. 127).
These chapters in Daniel contain some of the most argued-over passages of the Bible. But Helm encourages us not to get lost in numbers and predictions and to remember the purposes for which God gave these visions and dreams to Daniel. They show God’s sovereignty over world affairs, the fact that He has a timeline in mind, His care for His people, His remembrance and faithfulness to His covenant.
I didn’t agree with every little point Helm made. But overall, this book was a great companion in reading Daniel.
In Daniel for You, David Helm posits that, though God gave His people into the Babylonians’ hands as punishment for their disobedience and idolatry, He had additional purposes in mind.
This book shows that God intends to do more than merely judge an ungodly nation. Instead, he offers a saving word to those under his wrath—his deserved, settled anger. And for that, he will need his people dwelling there. They will need to be at home in Babylon, revealing God’s king and kingdom in ways that ultimately find their fulfillment in Christ (pp. 8-9).
Daniel and three of his friends were among those chosen to be educated, assimilated into Babylonian culture, and taken into the king’s service. They were given Babylonian names. One of their first challenges came with the food apportioned to them.
Daniel felt that eating the king’s food would be defiling to him. Helm shares different reasons that might be the case, among them the possibilities that the food violated Israel’s dietary laws, or possibly had been offered to Babylonian idols. But Daniel doesn’t rail against this requirement. He very respectfully asks the person in charge of them if they could eat vegetables and water for ten days and see how they fared. At the end of that time, Daniel and his three friends “were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king’s food” (Daniel 1:15). So the steward let them eat what they wanted.
This set the tone for the rest of Daniel’s interactions. He never seemed hateful or bitter. He seemed to genuinely care about the king when he had bad news to deliver.
In addition, Daniel was faithful to God, praying three times a day toward Jerusalem, even when threatened with the lion’s den for doing so.
Besides the famous lion’s den story, Daniel contains the account of his three friends who were threatened with the fiery furnace for not bowing down to the king’s statue. Their famous words continue to encourage us in our day: “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up” (3:17-18).
And then there’s Nebuchadnezzar’s fall from pride to live like an animal for seven years, until he acknowledges God and is restored to sanity and to his kingdom.
To a mother, Daniel is an encouraging example that young people can live in an ungodly culture and not be taken in by it: they can be “in the world and not of it,” and even more, be a testimony to it.
Daniel is also a stellar example of standing faithful to God in a way that is not condescending or demeaning to those who don’t believe as he does.
The second half of Daniel’s book is what Helm calls apocalyptic literature, which he defines as “an unveiling–a pulling back of the curtain on the unseen transcendent world and its role in bringing this present world to an end (p. 127).
These chapters in Daniel contain some of the most argued-over passages of the Bible. But Helm encourages us not to get lost in numbers and predictions and to remember the purposes for which God gave these visions and dreams to Daniel. They show God’s sovereignty over world affairs, the fact that He has a timeline in mind, His care for His people, His remembrance and faithfulness to His covenant.
I didn’t agree with every little point Helm made. But overall, this book was a great companion in reading Daniel.
August 29, 2024
I did an overview read of this book to get a big picture look at Daniel before we study Daniel this fall for our Bible study at church. Great companion. I look forward to rereading as we study in depth.
November 27, 2021
Used while preaching Daniel.
Very accessible filled. Helpful teaching on navigating apocalyptic literature. David Helm is a great expository guide!
Very accessible filled. Helpful teaching on navigating apocalyptic literature. David Helm is a great expository guide!
December 14, 2023
Such a fun, accessible, and practical introduction to Daniel. An excellent resource for lay leaders and pastors alike!
July 11, 2015
I used two commentaries to study Daniel. This and "Against the Flow" by John C Lennox. Both serve different purposes and I particularly appreciated doing them both. This one is a very good mix of depth and brevity which makes it an easy and satisfying read. Lennox's book has greater depth and also a specific angle in reflecting on Daniel in the "Age of Relativism" as the sub-title contends.
Daniel for You covers all the key points of the book and provides excellent perspective on Daniel's faithfulness, ministry and interpretation of the dreams that fill the majority of the book. We also get a good insight into the kings that reigned during Daniel's Babylonian exile especially Nebuchadnezzar.
When new or experienced in the book of Daniel I would recommend Daniel for You as an excellent study resource.
Daniel for You covers all the key points of the book and provides excellent perspective on Daniel's faithfulness, ministry and interpretation of the dreams that fill the majority of the book. We also get a good insight into the kings that reigned during Daniel's Babylonian exile especially Nebuchadnezzar.
When new or experienced in the book of Daniel I would recommend Daniel for You as an excellent study resource.
October 31, 2020
I found this commentary/devotional to be a great supplement to many much better commentaries. There was much insightful information on many pages, but the book began to drag close to the end. I pushed through to finished. The question for some would be... would I buy other books in this series... and I would say of course, but selectively. Every title in this series may not be worthy of my money. And how would I know... great question. I would have to do selective buying and then this would really be trial and error. buying. So relying on the Holy Spirit would have the final say on what I would buy and after that, the Spirit would make it profitable. A wow moment in this review. Take Care and Beware! .... tschüss / good by
January 26, 2018
This was great. It's not technical, but it doesn't promise to be. It is helpful, encouraging, challenging and Christ-centered.
I don't usually read a book alongside my devotional Bible reading but I decided to give this a go. It definitely helped my understanding, pushed my thinking and challenged me in its application.
I'd recommend it for a devotional read along, or if you're a Bible study leaders looking for a bit of insight.
It's probably worth mentioning that the first half is slightly better than the second. But it's a pretty tough gig to cover the last 6 chapters of Daniel in any format of commentary, let alone such a brief and informal one.
I don't usually read a book alongside my devotional Bible reading but I decided to give this a go. It definitely helped my understanding, pushed my thinking and challenged me in its application.
I'd recommend it for a devotional read along, or if you're a Bible study leaders looking for a bit of insight.
It's probably worth mentioning that the first half is slightly better than the second. But it's a pretty tough gig to cover the last 6 chapters of Daniel in any format of commentary, let alone such a brief and informal one.
September 7, 2020
As with all of the "God's Word for You" series, this is very accessible. If you don't want to read a whole chapter of Daniel per day, this takes it more slowly (there are 12 chapters of Daniel and 26 chapters in this book).
I like the humility of the author when he says Daniel's a complicated book and he's read many commentaries, but he may not have got all his explanations right. What he has tried to do, though, is equip us to read Daniel and apply it to our lives. I've definitely benefitted from reading this book.
I like the humility of the author when he says Daniel's a complicated book and he's read many commentaries, but he may not have got all his explanations right. What he has tried to do, though, is equip us to read Daniel and apply it to our lives. I've definitely benefitted from reading this book.
September 3, 2024
Para el tipo de comentario que es y su público meta, Daniel para ti es muy bueno. Es un libro sencillo, de fácil lectura, corto, al grano pero con una buena exégesis y conocimiento del contexto de por medio muy bueno. Me hubiera gustado leer un poco más sobre la postura de David Helm. Es bueno que la gente sepa qué tipo de persona y qué tipo de pensamiento tiene al escribir. Su postura escatológica no es la única, y aunque comparto la gran mayoría sería bueno ver que él mismo mencionara un poco de las diferencias de otras posturas en medio de su libro.
December 14, 2021
Excellent resource for Bible study. These commentaries by the good book company are an excellent resource to aid in Quiet time and Personal Bible study. Also with sermon prep. They have an added benefit of questions at the end to help you process much of what has been said.
They are very readable and clear, not at all dense.
They are very readable and clear, not at all dense.
October 23, 2025
I loved this commentary on the book of Daniel. It lends such a personal perspective to the Bible and honestly makes all the prophecy and confusing concepts in Daniel digestible. Most notably, Helm, does an excellent job of showing us where to find the picture and story of Jesus throughout each chapter of Daniel. I hope to read more of his books.
August 10, 2022
Teaching Important Truths
Teaching Important Truths. That the focus our study is not Daniel per se, but how other characters, like Nebuchadnezzar, also reveal to us the truth of the gospel.
Teaching Important Truths. That the focus our study is not Daniel per se, but how other characters, like Nebuchadnezzar, also reveal to us the truth of the gospel.
August 23, 2023
Very accessible devotional commentary on an Old Testament book that has been known to contain some rather difficult passages. Helm's chapters are short and concise and he does a solid job keeping the big picture in mind and mining relevant insights for readers today.
August 4, 2019
Excellent study on the book of Daniel!
“While we all yearn to know “how long,” there is a more important question: What am I doing to prepare? Labor on, in Christ!”
“While we all yearn to know “how long,” there is a more important question: What am I doing to prepare? Labor on, in Christ!”
November 21, 2020
Helm's commentary on Daniel is good. It covers the main points, but I think the breakdown of the chapters lacks consistency for the amount of text covered and the thoroughness of each section.
December 14, 2020
Helpful resource for preachers, Bible Study leaders, and those wanting to dig deeper into Daniel.
March 12, 2021
Gets the job done, but I have a lot of unanswered questions. I would say this is a five star book if you are a lay person devotionally reading Daniel and a three star book if you're a pastor mining Daniel for some substantive sermon or small group work.
January 17, 2022
I absolutely love this series and this one was equally as good as the other ones I have done.
April 20, 2022
I would imagine this would be a challenging book to write commentary on. I just felt that it was repetitive from halfway to the end and lost my interest
March 13, 2023
Another great one in this series.
October 4, 2023
Excellent survey of Daniel. The apocalyptic literature still kinda confuses me, but a little bit less, which is a good thing. So of course I'm jumping into Revelation next.
August 22, 2024
One of the more helpful commentaries I used for preaching Daniel.
September 28, 2024
David Helm's book is a short commentary on the book of Daniel. Good book for practical application. Didn't agree with his eschatology yet somethings helpful in understanding the book of Daniel.
October 7, 2024
Excellent! David's got a great gift of explaining complex things simply. Great for sermon prep or your QT
July 25, 2015
Theo-practical, "easy to read" commentary/review on the book of Daniel. For the layman, the author does a great job in outlining Israel's historical "exile" in Babylon while we follow the book's principal character (Daniel) and his relationships to the kings of Babylon & Persia. Some of these stories are quite familiar but are even more compelling today. I love several themes introduced and discussed here including: God's sovereign rule over all nations and governments, the accountability we have to a Holy God, Our present day exile, Daniel's consistency, integrity and humility. Highly recommend!
October 13, 2015
I've always struggled reading the last few chapters of the book of Daniel and this book did a lot to explain things. Breaks the book of Daniel down into easily understandable language as well as into a easy read. It could also be used as a devotional read in your daily quiet time. I highly recommend this book to all believers interested in OT prophetical books.
March 8, 2016
I love this series of devotional commentaries, but this is probably the weakest one yet - in that it is a drier read and not as accessible as the others. Having said that, it is still a helpful book, and I was strengthened in faith by it.
July 3, 2016
Our small group just didn't connect with this one as well as Judges for You. We ended up abandoning it about halfway through.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews