Qualified to serve

Daniel 1:3-4 - Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, chief of his court officials, to bring in some of the Israelites from the royal family and the nobility - young men without any physical defect, handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning, well informed, quick to understand, and qualified to serve in the king's palace.

I wonder how many men fit this job description. How many young, upper class, smart, quick-learning, hunks do you know?

Now further restrict that list to humble Christians. Pretty short list, eh? That's the "A" list that Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were on.

I wonder why we almost always use Daniel's Hebrew name, but we refer to his 3 friends by the new (Babylonian?) names given to them by the chief official who was first in charge of them during their captivity. I wonder if the official gave all his trainees new names.