He Changes Times And Seasons › Daniel 6
CHAPTER 6
Daniel in the Lions’ Den
The God who delivers and rescues
Chapter 6 gives the best-known story of Daniel. Daniel is now in his eighties, and he has served three kings with integrity. His enemies cannot find anything against him except his devotion to his God, so they build a trap out of the law of the land.
The chapter is a mirror of chapter 3. There, three men refused to worship an image and were thrown into a furnace. Here, one man refuses to stop praying and is thrown into a den. In both, a pagan king ends by praising the living God.
An Excellent Spirit and a Conspiracy
DANIEL 6:1–5
1It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who should be throughout the whole kingdom;
2and over them three presidents, of whom Daniel was one; that these satraps might give account unto them, and that the king should have no damage.
3Then this Daniel was distinguished above the presidents and the satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.
4Then the presidents and the satraps sought to find occasion against Daniel as touching the kingdom; but they could find no occasion nor fault, forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.
5Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God.
Darius sets over the kingdom one hundred twenty satraps and three presidents, of whom Daniel is one. Daniel distinguishes himself because an excellent spirit is in him, and the king thinks to set him over the whole realm. The other officials are jealous and look for a charge against Daniel regarding the kingdom, but they can find no occasion or fault, because he is faithful and no error or fault is found in him.
The opponents therefore admit that they will not find any charge against Daniel unless it concerns the law of his God. That is the finest testimony anyone could receive from an enemy.
The Flattering Law
DANIEL 6:6–9
6Then these presidents and satraps assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever.
7All the presidents of the kingdom, the deputies and the satraps, the counsellors and the governors, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a strong interdict, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions.
8Now, O king, establish the interdict, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not.
9Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the interdict.
The presidents and satraps assemble before the king and propose a decree: whoever asks a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except of the king, shall be cast into the den of lions. They ask the king to sign the writing so that, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, it cannot be altered.
Flattery is the bait. The proposal sounds like a loyalty test, but its purpose is to trap a single man. King Darius signs the document without perceiving the plot.
Daniel Prays as Before
DANIEL 6:10–15
10And when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house (now his windows were open in his chamber toward Jerusalem); and he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
11Then these men assembled together, and found Daniel making petition and supplication before his God.
12Then they came near, and spake before the king concerning the king’s interdict: Hast thou not signed an interdict, that every man that shall make petition unto any god or man within thirty days, save unto thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not.
13Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the interdict that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day.
14Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore displeased, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him; and he labored till the going down of the sun to rescue him.
15Then these men assembled together unto the king, and said unto the king, Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians, that no interdict nor statute which the king establisheth may be changed.
When Daniel knows that the writing is signed, he goes into his house, where in his upper chamber he has windows open toward Jerusalem. As he did previously, he kneels three times a day, prays, and gives thanks before his God. He does not change his habit, hide it, or argue about it. The windows open toward Jerusalem recall Solomon’s prayer in 1 Kings 8 that when the exiles prayed toward the temple, God would hear.
The conspirators come in a body and find him praying and making supplication. They remind the king of the decree, then tell him Daniel pays no regard to the king. Darius is very displeased and works until sundown to deliver Daniel, but the men remind him that no decree of the king can be changed.
The Den and the Deliverance
DANIEL 6:16–23
16Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.
17And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his lords; that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.
18Then the king went to his palace, and passed the night fasting; neither were instruments of music brought before him: and his sleep fled from him.
19Then the king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions.
20And when he came near unto the den to Daniel, he cried with a lamentable voice; the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?
21Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live for ever.
22My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me; forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.
23Then was the king exceeding glad, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he had trusted in his God.
The king commands Daniel to be brought and cast into the den. Darius says, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee. A stone is laid on the mouth of the den, and the king seals it with his own signet and with the signet of his lords, so that nothing might be changed. The king returns to his palace, fasts, refuses entertainment, and cannot sleep.
At the first light of day he hurries to the den and cries with a lamentable voice: Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? Daniel answers, O king, live for ever. My God hath sent His angel and hath shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me, because innocency was found in me before Him; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt. The king is exceeding glad, and Daniel is taken out of the den and no manner of hurt is found upon him because he trusted in his God.
The Accusers Meet the Lions
DANIEL 6:24
24And the king commanded, and they brought those men that had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, them, their children, and their wives; and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces, before they came to the bottom of the den.
The men who accused Daniel are brought and cast into the den of lions, along with their children and their wives, and the lions overpower them before they reach the bottom of the den. The brutality reflects the Persian practice of the time, not a standard for God’s people, and the Bible reports it without approving it. The point is that the trap they set for Daniel closed on them, as Proverbs and the Psalms say it will.
Darius’s Decree and Daniel’s Prosperity
DANIEL 6:25–28
25Then king Darius wrote unto all the peoples, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth: Peace be multiplied unto you.
26I make a decree, that in all the dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel; for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, And his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed; and his dominion shall be even unto the end.
27He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.
28So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
Darius writes to all peoples, nations, and languages: In every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel, for He is the living God and steadfast forever, His kingdom shall not be destroyed, and His dominion shall be even unto the end. He delivers and rescues and works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.
So Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian. His story continues across empires because the One he serves outlasts them all.
Discussion Questions
- How had Daniel’s long-standing habit of prayer prepared him for this test?
- What does it mean that Daniel kept his windows open toward Jerusalem?
- How does the king’s struggle in verses 14–20 show the limits of human power?
- What is the “lions’ den” you may face, and how will you respond?