70. DANIEL IN THE LIONS' DEN
"Thy God whom than servest continually, He will deliver thee."
Aim
To show how God delivered Daniel from the lions- because he trusted in Him.
God had shown Nebuchadnezzar in a dream that his kingdom would be overthrown by the Medes and Persians, represented in the image by the breast and arms of silver. So it came to pass that Darius the Mede reigned in Babylon while Daniel was still living there. One hundred and twenty princes ruled the whole kingdom of Medo-Persia; three presidents were appointed over them; and of these three presidents, Daniel was made the first, "because an excellent spirit was in him " (v 3).
Daniel 6
THE PRINCES CAIN FIND NO FAULT IN DANIEL: Daniel 6:1-5
The princes and presidents whom the king had set over his whole kingdom were envious of Daniel. They would love to find fault with him for they hated having to answer to the Jew. In all that he did however, Daniel was faithful and diligent, for he followed the principle: " Whatso ever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men" (Col. 3:23). They knew full well that the king found him thoroughly trustworthy. It seemed hopeless to try to break the king's confidence in him. "We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel", they said amongst themselves, "except we find it against him concerning the law of his God" (v 5). The fact that Daniel was steadfast in worshipping his God, even here in Babylon, gave them an idea. So they laid a trap for him.
A PLOT IS LAID AGAINST DANIEL: Daniel 6:6-9
The princes and presidents were united in their hatred of Daniel. They presented the king with their clever plan.
"King Darius, live for ever, " they said. "All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors and the princes, the counsellors, and the cap tains, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall he cast into the den of lions" (v7).
Such a clever plan could not fail. It was very flattering to the king and would give him honour and prestige before all his subjects. The king, of course, was not aware that Daniel had not been consulted; they had lied about that. To him it sounded like a good idea and so he was per suaded to sign the writing, making it a decree that could not be changed, "according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not" (v8).
DANIEL CAST INTO THE LIONS' DEN: Daniel 6:10-17
As soon as Daniel heard what had been done, he realized that it was a plot against his life. He was an old man by now, probably ninety years of age. God had blessed him and made him prosper all these long years while captive in Babylon. He had cared for him and saved him and his faithful friends out of many troubles. Daniel had trusted in God to deliver him and would now still put his trust in Him.
He went into his house and knelt down before the open windows and prayed to God. Far out to the west lay the city of Jerusalem, from which he had been led away captive when he was only a lad. Now that city which he loved lay in ruins; but the God who had said He would put His Name there was a living God. Solomon had asked God at the dedi cation of the Temple to hear the prayers of His servants, who turned to ward Jerusalem in faith (2 Chronicles 6:36-39). Three times a day Dan iel used to pray before these open windows and he should not cease to pray and give thanks to God now, though his life was in danger. He knew he must obey God, rather than man.
It was this very steadfastness that made the other presidents and princes sure that they could trap Daniel. They came together to spy on him and were soon able to catch him disobeying the king's decree as he bowed in worship to his own God. Off they went to the king. Had he not just signed a decree, that anyone who prayed to any God or man except the king, must be thrown into the den of lions? The king agreed that it was so, "according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not" (v 12). Their wicked plan had worked. "That Daniel which is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day"
The king could see at once what they were up to, but it was too late. He had signed the decree without giving a thought to Daniel, for he knew quite well that Daniel had always been faithful to the God of Israel. He had learned to trust the old man and admire him, but now, through his own pride, he had signed a law that meant Daniel's death. He was very distressed and tried everything he could think of to change that law, so that Daniel might be saved. All day he argued and searched out the matter, but nothing could be done. Meanwhile his evil counsellors gloated over the success of their cruel plan.
Sadly the king gave the command for Daniel to be brought out and cast into the den of lions. His last words to Daniel were words of great encouragement.
"Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee"
Then they brought a stone to seal the mouth of the den and the king sealed it with his own seal and the seal of his counsellors.
DANIEL IS DELIVERED: Daniel 6:18-23
The king was very distressed and passed the night fasting. He could not eat, nor did he want music to soothe him. The whole situation seemed to be hopeless, yet Daniel's faith and courage had impressed him. Daniel's God had been known to work great miracles before. The king's mind was restless and he could not sleep. Impatiently he waited for the morn ing. As soon as it was light he got up and went in haste to the den of lions.
How unhappy he was knowing that he had thoughtlessly brought all this about. He cried out to Daniel, "O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?" (v20).
To his great relief he heard Daniel's voice, 'My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me" (v 22). Daniel had found favour with God for his upright and honest be haviour and God brought Daniel up out of the pit and just as he had said there was not a scratch to be found on him "because he believed in his God" (v 23). It was his faith which had "stopped the mouths of the li ons" (Hebrews 11:33).
KING DARIUS MAKES A NEW DECREE: Daniel 6:24-28
King Darius lost no time in punishing those wicked men who had tricked him with their scheming. They were to suffer the very thing they had planned for Daniel. They were thrown into the den of lions, with their wives and children, "and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den" (v24).
Then the king made a new decree and sent it throughout the king dom.
"/ make a decree, that in every dominion of my kingdom men trem ble and fear before the God of Daniel: for He is the living God, and steadfast for ever, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end" (v 26). The king recog nised that not only could Daniel's God deliver him and rescue him from the lions, but He is a God who lives forever. Darius' decree sounds very much like the words of Daniel 2:44 in which Daniel made known to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, the interpretation of his dream. Daniel was able to show Darius what he had once shown Nebuchadnezzar, that the Kingdom of God would one day replace the kingdom of men. His kingdom would be an everlasting kingdom of righteousness and peace. So Daniel used his deliverance from the lions to teach the good news of the kingdom of God to this gentile king.
LESSON FOR US
Once again we have a wonderful example before us of faith and obedience. We may never be called on to face such a challenge as a den full of lions, but God does want us to show the same faith. If Daniel's faith and trust in God could stop the mouths of lions, we can be sure that God will also help us in our trials if we are faithful too.
Nothing should stop us from praying and thanking Him as Daniel did. Remember too, that God would not have sent His angel to save Daniel, if he had not been trustworthy and honest in all his daily duties. Our behaviour must be upright always so that no one can find fault with our words and actions. By our good behaviour we can show those around us, that we believe in God and are looking forward to being in His king dom.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
The same hateful attitude shown by the presidents and princes to wards Daniel has been shown to God's people in all generations. This feeling is called 'anti-semitism € . The Jews are descendants of Shem (Gen. 11:10-26. Shem was an ancestor of Abraham) and are therefore called ' Semitic'. Anti-semitism means 'hatred of the Jews'. In the promises God made to Abraham, He said, "I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee" (Gen 12:3). Those who have blessed the Jews, Abraham's seed, God has blessed.
There are many examples in the Bible of those whom God has cursed because of their hatred towards His people. (In lesson 22 we will learn of "Haman the Jews' enemy"). The presidents and princes of the Medes were first moved with envy against Daniel because they could find no fault in him. Envy turned to hatred, as it often does. So they ended up hating him because he was a Jew (Daniel 6:18) and their wives and their children must have shown the same feelings. That is why God punished them too.
In our own time, a man rose up called Hitler who had an evil plan just like these men, but he intended to kill all the Jews. He put to death six million, an unbelievable number and caused many other Jews to flee to the land of Israel. This was just what God had said would happen before Christ's return. So Hitler's evil work brought about another part of God's great purpose with Israel. Soon He will send the Lord Jesus Christ to save His people from the great Russian enemy which will come into the land. After that, the Jews will no longer be hated and despised, but God will make them head of the nations (Deuteronomy 28:13; Jeremiah3:17). All people will see that God's promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is being fulfilled: "In thee shall all families of the earth be blessed" (Genesis 12:3). Let us love the Jews, because they are the descendants of Abraham, for that is why God loves them (Romans 11:26).
QUESTIONS
Short Answers
1. Why were the princes and presidents envious of Daniel?
2. What was the decree that the princes and presidents asked king Darius to agree to?
3. What did Daniel do when he heard of the decree?
4. What did the princes and presidents tell the king about Daniel?
5. Was king Darius pleased to find out that Daniel had broken his decree?
6. What did king Darius do that night while Daniel was in the lions' den?
7. What did Daniel say to the king when he came to the lions' den in the morning?
8. Was Daniel hurt at all by the lions?
9. What was done to the wicked princes and presidents?
10. What was king Darius' new decree?
Detailed Answers
11. Tell the story of how Daniel was cast into the lions' den, and was saved.
12. What did king Darius learn about
(a) Daniel's God?
(b) the Kingdom of God?
13. How is Daniel a good example to us in this story?
Additional Answers
14. (a) Why did the presidents and princes hate Daniel?
(b) In His promise to Abraham, what did God say He would do to those who cursed the Jews?
(c) What did God do to those in this story who hated Daniel?
(d) Why should we love the Jews?