Daniel 1:15

"At the end of ten days, their faces appeared fairer and they were fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate of the king’s delicacies."

Key Reflection

In Daniel 1:15, after a period of ten days on a vegetarian diet of pulse and water, Daniel and his companions showed significant physical improvement compared to their peers who enjoyed the king's rich food. This dramatic change in appearance highlighted the superiority of the simple, healthy diet over the luxuriant royal fare, illustrating the positive impact of disciplined self-control and adherence to virtuous habits.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

And at the end of ten days their countenances appeared fairer -Hebrew, “good;” that is, they appeared more beautiful and healthful. The experiment was successful. There was no diminution of beauty, of vigour, or of the usual indications of health. One of the results of a course of temperance appears in the countenance, and it is among the wise appointments of God that it should be so. He has so made us, that while the other parts of the body may be protected from the gaze of men, it is necessary that the “face” should be exposed. Hence, he has made the countenance the principal scat of expression, for the chief muscles which indicate expression have their location there.

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