Sunday School Lesson Plan- (9-11 years)
Date: 14th January, 2023 Lesson: God gifts to all Est. Time:
1hr
Overview & Objectives:
Prayer 1 min
Scripture Story: Daniel 2 GNB ( Nebuchadnezzar's dream and interpretation by Daniel ): 1In the second year that 10 mins
Nebuchadnezzar was king, he had a dream. It worried him so much that he couldn't sleep, 2so he sent for his fortune tellers, magicians,
sorcerers, and wizards to come and explain the dream to him. When they came and stood before the king, 3he said to them, “I'm
worried about a dream I have had. I want to know what it means.”
4They answered the king in Aramaic, “May Your Majesty live for ever! Tell us your dream, and we will explain it to you.”
5The king said to them, “I have made up my mind that you must tell me the dream and then tell me what it means. If you can't, I'll have
you torn limb from limb and make your houses a pile of ruins. 6But if you can tell me both the dream and its meaning, I will reward you
with gifts and great honour. Now then, tell me what the dream was and what it means.”
7They answered the king again, “If Your Majesty will only tell us what the dream was, we will explain it.”
8At that, the king exclaimed, “Just as I thought! You are trying to gain time, because you see that I have made up my mind 9to give all of
you the same punishment if you don't tell me the dream. You have agreed among yourselves to go on telling me lies because you hope
that in time things will change. Tell me what the dream was, and then I will know that you can also tell me what it means.”
10The advisers replied, “There is no one on the face of the earth who can tell Your Majesty what you want to know. No king, not even
the greatest and most powerful, has ever made such a demand of his fortune tellers, magicians, and wizards. 11What Your Majesty is
asking for is so difficult that no one can do it for you except the gods, and they do not live among human beings.”
12At that, the king flew into a rage and ordered the execution of all the royal advisers in Babylon. 13So the order was issued for all of
them to be killed, including Daniel and his friends.
God Shows Daniel what the Dream Means
14Then Daniel went to Arioch, commander of the king's bodyguard, who had been ordered to carry out the execution. Choosing his
words carefully, 15he asked Arioch why the king had issued such a harsh order. So Arioch told Daniel what had happened.
16Daniel went at once and obtained royal permission for more time, so that he could tell the king what the dream meant. 17Then
Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had happened. 18He told them to pray to the God of
heaven for mercy and to ask him to explain the mystery to them so that they would not be killed along with the other advisers in
Babylon. 19Then that same night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision, and he praised the God of heaven:
20“God is wise and powerful!
Praise him for ever and ever.
21He controls the times and the seasons;
he makes and unmakes kings;
it is he who gives wisdom and understanding.
22He reveals things that are deep and secret;
he knows what is hidden in darkness,
and he himself is surrounded by light.
23I praise you and honour you, God of my ancestors.
You have given me wisdom and strength;
you have answered my prayer
and shown us what to tell the king.”
Daniel Tells the King the Dream and Explains it
24So Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had commanded to execute the royal advisers. He said to him, “Don't put them to death.
Take me to the king, and I will tell him what his dream means.”
25At once Arioch took Daniel into King Nebuchadnezzar's presence and told the king, “I have found one of the Jewish exiles, who can
tell Your Majesty the meaning of your dream.”
26The king said to Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar), “Can you tell me what I dreamt and what it means?”
27Daniel replied, “Your Majesty, there is no wizard, magician, fortune teller, or astrologer who can tell you that. 28But there is a God in
heaven, who reveals mysteries. He has informed Your Majesty what will happen in the future. Now I will tell you the dream, the vision
you had while you were asleep.
29“While Your Majesty was sleeping, you dreamt about the future; and God, who reveals mysteries, showed you what is going to
happen. 30Now, this mystery was revealed to me, not because I am wiser than anyone else, but so that Your Majesty may learn the
meaning of your dream and understand the thoughts that have come to you.
31“Your Majesty, in your vision you saw standing before you a giant statue, bright and shining, and terrifying to look at. 32Its head was
made of the finest gold; its chest and arms were made of silver; its waist and hips of bronze; 33its legs of iron, and its feet partly of iron
and partly of clay. 34While you were looking at it, a great stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it, struck the iron and
clay feet of the statue, and shattered them. 35At once the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold crumbled and became like the dust on a
threshing place in summer. The wind carried it all away, leaving not a trace. But the stone grew to be a mountain that covered the
whole earth.
36“This was the dream. Now I will tell Your Majesty what it means. 37Your Majesty, you are the greatest of all kings. The God of heaven
has made you emperor and given you power, might, and honour. 38He has made you ruler of all the inhabited earth and ruler over all
the animals and birds. You are the head of gold. 39After you there will be another empire, not as great as yours, and after that a third,
an empire of bronze, which will rule the whole earth. 40And then there will be a fourth empire, as strong as iron, which shatters and
breaks everything. And just as iron shatters everything, it will shatter and crush all the earlier empires. 41You also saw that the feet
and the toes were partly clay and partly iron. This means that it will be a divided empire. It will have something of the strength of iron,
because there was iron mixed with the clay. 42The toes — partly iron and partly clay — mean that part of the empire will be strong and
part of it weak. 43You also saw that the iron was mixed with the clay. This means that the rulers of that empire will try to unite their
families by intermarriage, but they will not be able to, any more than iron can mix with clay. 44At the time of those rulers the God of
heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. It will never be conquered, but will completely destroy all those empires, and then
last for ever. 45You saw how a stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it and how it struck the statue made of iron,
bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God is telling Your Majesty what will happen in the future. I have told you exactly what you
dreamt, and have given you its true meaning.”
The King Rewards Daniel
46Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed to the ground and gave orders for sacrifices and offerings to be made to Daniel. 47The king said,
“Your God is the greatest of all gods, the Lord over kings, and the one who reveals mysteries. I know this because you have been able to
explain this mystery.” 48Then he gave Daniel a high position, presented him with many splendid gifts, put him in charge of the province
of Babylon, and made him the head of all the royal advisers. 49At Daniel's request the king put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in
charge of the affairs of the province of Babylon; Daniel, however, remained at the royal court.
Activity: Materials/Demonstration/Etc. - Video aid 8 mins
source: (5) Daniel's interpretation of Nebuchadnezzar's dream - YouTube
Memory verse: Ephesians 4:11 GNB - 11It was he who “gave gifts”; he appointed some to be apostles,
others to be prophets, others to be evangelists, others to be pastors and teachers.
Brainstorm real life questions: 10 mins
In what ways have you experienced the power of prayer in your life, similar to how Daniel and
his friends prayed for God's guidance?
How can we apply the lesson from Daniel 2 in our daily lives?
How can we seek God's wisdom in our decision-making process?
Reflect on a challenging situation you've faced recently. How did you approach it, and did you
consciously seek God's wisdom in that situation?
How can we use our gifts and talents to serve God and others, as Daniel and his friends did?
Notes: In Daniel chapter 2, King Nebuchadnezzar has a frightening dream that none of his wise men can 20 mins
understand. As a response, he orders the execution of all Babylon's smart men, including Daniel and his associates.
However, with God's guidance, Daniel interprets the dream, saving the wise men's lives.
Key Points
The Dream: The king envisions a massive statue with a gold head, a silver chest and arms, a bronze belly and thighs,
iron legs, and clay-mixed feet.
The Interpretation: Daniel interprets the dream as a series of kingdoms, beginning with Nebuchadnezzar's (gold)
and declining in majesty and might.
God's Wisdom: Daniel recognizes that it is God who discloses riddles, and that He gave Nebuchadnezzar a dream to
predict what would happen in the future.
Lessons for Today.
God is the ultimate source of wisdom. The narrative emphasizes that genuine wisdom comes from God. When we
confront difficulties, we can seek God's guidance via prayer and study of His word.
God is in control of history. The dream's cycle of kingdoms serves as a reminder that God has power over human
history. This can bring comfort and hope during difficult times.
Application
Seek God's wisdom: Encourage students to seek God's wisdom in their daily lives, particularly when faced with
difficult decisions or obstacles.
Trust in God's sovereignty: Remind the children that even if the future appears unpredictable, we can believe in God's
sovereignty and control over the course of history.
Closing: Lesson recap, memory verse & Prayer 10 mins
