Daniel 6:1-28

The Men who were Loyal to God

Daniel

Robert Bryce

Chapter 6

v1 Darius decided to appoint 120 rulers. Together, they would rule over the whole *kingdom. v2 He also appointed three other officials. They were more important. They would watch over the work of the rulers so that the king would not have to worry. Daniel was one of these other three officials. v3 But Daniel did his work much better than the other officials and rulers. He was very good at his job. So the king wanted to give him responsibility for the whole *kingdom. v4 The other officials and rulers watched how Daniel worked for the king. They tried to show that he was doing something wrong. But they could not find anything wrong because Daniel was loyal and honest. He did everything that the king wanted him to do. v5 Then these men said to each other, ‘We cannot find anything that Daniel does wrong. We can only accuse him about something from the laws of his God.’

Verses 1-5 This happened when Darius was king. Daniel was an old man then. He was over 80 years old, but he was still serving the king. Daniel had served the *Babylonians. The army from Media and Persia defeated the *Babylonians and Daniel served them too. This is strange. But it shows that Daniel was loyal and very good at his job. The new rulers could trust him. Darius ruled over a large *kingdom. So he needed help from people that he could trust. He appointed 120 people to help him. Each person ruled over a district of the *kingdom. Darius appointed three superior officials. They watched over the 120 rulers. Daniel was one of these officials. He was much better than the other officials and rulers were. The king wanted to make him the chief official. Then the other officials became jealous. Perhaps they were not as loyal and honest as Daniel was. They watched Daniel to see if he did anything wrong. They watched him, but they could not accuse him. He was always loyal and honest. Then the officials had an idea. Although Daniel was loyal to the king, he was more loyal to God. So perhaps they could make him obey God but not obey the king. They made a plan and then they went to see the king.

v6 So these officials and rulers went together to the king. ‘King Darius, we want you to live for all time’, they said. v7 ‘All the officials in the *kingdom including the princes, rulers and captains have agreed. The king should make a law. For 30 days the people must pray only to you, the king. If they pray to any other man or god, then your servants must arrest them. The servants must throw them into the cage where your lions live. v8 Now, you, the king, should make the law and sign it. Then it will be a law for the *Medes and the *Persians, and nobody can change it.’ v9 So King Darius wrote the law and he signed it.

Verses 6-9 When the officials and rulers went to see the king, they told him lies. They said that all the important people had agreed. But, of course, Daniel had not agreed with them. They probably had not told him what they were doing. Daniel was not with the other officials when they went to see the king. The king should have thought that this was strange.

The other officials advised the king to make a law. The law would make him feel important. For 30 days, people must not pray to any other man or god. They could only pray to the king. The king must punish anyone who did not obey. He must throw them into a cage that had lions in it.

Perhaps the officials told the king that this law would unite the *kingdom. The people that he had defeated would have to give honour to him.

After the king made a law, nobody could change it. That was the law of the *kingdom of the *Medes and *Persians. So the king signed the law.

The devil can even use laws to make bad things happen.

v10 Daniel heard that the king had signed the law. Then he went home. He went upstairs to his room where the windows opened in the direction of Jerusalem. He kneeled and he prayed to God. He also thanked God. He did this three times every day. This is what he had always done. v11 Then the officials and rulers met together to see what Daniel would do. They saw that Daniel was praying to God. And he was asking God for help. v12 So they went to the king. They spoke to him about the law that he had made. ‘Do you remember that you signed a law?’ they said to the king. ‘For 30 days, nobody must pray to any god or man, except to you, the king. If they do pray to someone else, they must die. Your servants must throw them into the cage where your lions live.’ The king answered them. ‘It is true. It is a law for the *Medes and the *Persians and nobody can change it.’ v13 Then the officials and rulers said to the king, ‘That Daniel, whom Nebuchadnezzar brought from Judah, does not obey you. He does not obey the law that you signed. He still prays three times every day to his God.’ v14 When the king heard this, he was very worried. He tried to think of a way to save Daniel. Until evening, the king struggled to find a way to save Daniel. v15 Then the officials and rulers came back to the king. ‘Remember that it is a law for the *Medes and the *Persians. Nobody can change a law that the king has made’, they reminded him.

Verses 10-15 This law was bad news for Daniel. He gave honour to the real God and he prayed to him. He would not pray to anyone else. He could not obey the king’s new law and so the king would have to punish him. But Daniel continued to do what he always did. He trusted God and loved him. And so he wanted to talk to him. So he prayed three times every day in front of his window. Daniel did not pray in secret. He probably had many servants in his house. They would know what he was doing. It was not hard for his enemies to accuse him. They could see that he did not obey the king’s new law.

So Daniel’s enemies went to the king. They reminded him about the law that he had made. They reminded him about the punishment. The king knew that nobody could change the law.

Then the men told the king about Daniel, but they told lies again. It was true that Daniel prayed to God. He did not pray to the king. But they said that Daniel did not obey the king. Daniel was loyal to the king and he did obey him. But he could not obey the new law that the king had made. It was more important to obey God than to obey the new law.

This news made the king very sad. He realised what the officials had done. They had forced him to punish Daniel. They wanted Daniel to die. The king tried all day to save Daniel. He could not find a way. Daniel’s enemies reminded him that nobody could change the law. Even the king could not change the law.

v16 Then the king gave the order for his servants to arrest Daniel. So they threw him into the cage where the lions lived. And the king spoke to Daniel. ‘You are loyal to your God and you serve him constantly. I pray that he will rescue you’, he said. v17 Then they brought a stone. And they put it over the entrance to the lions’ cage. The king marked the stone with his ring of authority. He also marked it with the rings of his important men. This meant that nobody could move that stone. Nobody could change Daniel’s situation. v18 Then the king returned to his palace. He refused both food and entertainment. And he was unable to sleep.

Verses 16-18 The king could not change the law. So he could not save Daniel. Daniel had not obeyed the law, so the king had to punish him. He had to throw him to the lions, because the law said that he must. We can see that the king liked Daniel. He did not want to hurt Daniel. The king hoped that Daniel’s God would rescue him. He knew that Daniel was loyal to his God. That is why Daniel did not obey the king’s new law. The king even had to mark the stone with his ring of authority. Nobody could move the stone in order to rescue Daniel. Even the king himself could not move the stone. Daniel had to spend the whole night in the cage with the lions.

The king was very unhappy. He hoped that God would rescue Daniel. But he did not know if God would save Daniel. The king was worried and he could not sleep.

v19 The king got up very early in the morning. He hurried to the cage where the lions were. v20 When he got near to the cage, he called out in an anxious voice. ‘Daniel, you are a loyal servant of the living God. Was your God able to rescue you from the lions?’ v21 Then Daniel said to the king, ‘I want you, the king, to live for all time. v22 My God sent his *angel, who shut the lions’ mouths. So the lions have not hurt me. God knows that I am innocent. I have not done anything to hurt you, the king, either.’ v23 The king was very happy when he heard Daniel’s voice. He ordered his servants to lift Daniel out of the cage. So they pulled him out and they looked at him. They saw that the lions had not hurt him. This happened because he trusted his God.

Verses 19-23 Early in the morning the king hurried to the cage. He called out in an anxious voice. So he probably did not expect Daniel to answer. But the king hoped that God had been able to save Daniel. Daniel answered the king. He told him what had happened. God had rescued him, but he had done something more. He had sent his *angel to be with Daniel. The *angel did not allow the lions to hurt Daniel. The *angel might have been Jesus, the Son of God. The king had had an unhappy night. Although Daniel was with the lions, he had had a happier night. He had an *angel with him.

Daniel had not obeyed the king’s law. But he told the king that he was innocent. He was loyal to the king. He had obeyed God and God had rescued him.

v24 Then the king gave an order to his servants. So the servants brought the men who had accused Daniel to the king. They threw those men and their wives and children into the deep cage with the lions. Before they reached the bottom of the cage, the lions attacked them. The lions broke all their bones as they killed them.

The king then punished Daniel’s enemies. He punished their families too. That was the law of the *Medes and *Persians. The king’s servants threw the evil men and their families to the lions. The lions killed them before they reached the bottom of the deep cage. This shows that the lions were hungry. Although the lions were hungry, they had not hurt Daniel. God really had saved him.

The wives and children were probably innocent. But they died too because Daniel’s enemies did an evil thing.

v25 Afterwards King Darius wrote to all the people in every country in the world. He wrote in every language. ‘I pray that you all have happy and successful lives.

v26 I have made a law. In every part of my *kingdom, the people must give honour to Daniel’s God. And they must be afraid of him.

He is the living God

and he will live always.

Nobody will ever destroy his *kingdom.

It will never end.

v27 He saves and he rescues people.

He does extraordinary and wonderful things

in heaven and on earth.

He has saved Daniel from the lions’ power.’

v28 So Daniel was successful while Darius was king. And he continued to be successful afterwards, when Cyrus from Persia (Iran) became king.

Verses 25-28 The king wrote a letter to all his people. He ordered them to give honour to Daniel’s God. Now Darius knew that Daniel’s God was the real God. One day Darius and Daniel would die, but God will never die. One day Darius’s *kingdom would end. God’s *kingdom will never end. Darius gave honour to the real God. He knew that God had saved Daniel from the lions. Nobody else could have done that.

Although Daniel was an old man, he still served King Darius and King Cyrus. He was loyal and successful.

Chapter s 7-12

This is the second part of the book of Daniel. Here we read about Daniel’s dreams. God sent messages to Daniel in dreams. He told Daniel what would happen in the future. Sometimes Daniel had his dreams when he was asleep (Daniel 7:1). But sometimes he was probably awake (Daniel 10:1-4). kingdom ~ the place or territory or land where a king rules.
Babylonian ~ someone or something from a place called Babylon.
Mede ~ a person from Media, a nation at the time of Daniel.
Persian ~ someone or something from a country called Persia in Daniel’s time; it is called Iran today.
angel ~ God’s servant in heaven, who brings messages from God.