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Daniel, along with others, was carried into captivity as a hostage in 605 b.c. by Nebuchadnezzar’s armies. The Jerusalem temple was also plundered.
Meats and drinks in Babylon were offered to idols before they were consumed. Mosaic law prohibited the Hebrews from eating such foods. Daniel arranged with a guard to test himself and his four friends by allowing them to eat their own diet for ten days.
God granted them better health, wisdom, and understanding than any of the other hostages; therefore the guard allowed the five Hebrew men to continue eating the foods allowed by their divine laws.
When Nebuchadnezzar examined those who had been in training, he declared that they were superior to the magicians and enchanters who belonged to the royal court. This was the first of a series of events in which the captives who committed themselves fully to their God triumphed over all the pagan leaders of two empires.