Daniel 6:20

And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel: and 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? O DANIEL, SERVANT OF THE LIVING GOD - having life Himself, and able to preserve thy life; contrasted with the lifeless idols (cf. , "the gods of silver and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know"). Darius borrowed the phrase from Daniel; God extorting from an idolater a confession of the truth. WHOM THOU SERVEST CONTINUALLY - in times of persecution as well as times of peace. IS THY GOD ... ABLE TO DELIVER THEE FROM THE LIONS? - the language of doubt, yet hope....

WANT of time compelled me to break off our last Lecture at the point where Daniel relates how _the king approached the cave _Now he reports his words, — _O Daniel, servant of the living God! thy God whom thou worshipest constantly, has he been able to deliver thee? _says he. Darius declares the God of Israel to be the living One. But if there is a living God, he excludes all those imaginary deities whom men fancy for themselves by their own ingenuity. For it is necessary that deity should be one, and this principle is acknowledged by even the profane. However men may be deluded by their dreams, yet they all confess the impossibility of having more gods than one. They distort, indeed, God’s character, but they cannot deny his unity. When Darius uttered this praise of the God of Israel, he confesses all other deities to be mere fictions; but he shews how, as I have said, the profane hold t...

18-24 The best way to have a good night, is to keep a good conscience. We are sure of what the king doubted, that the servants of the living God have a Master well able to protect them. See the power of God over the fiercest creatures, and believe his power to restrain the roaring lion that goeth about continually seeking to devour. Daniel was kept perfectly safe, because he believed in his God. Those who boldly and cheerfully trust in God to protect them in the way of duty, shall always find him a present help. Thus the righteous is delivered out of trouble, and the wicked cometh in his stead. The short triumph of the wicked will end in their ruin....

Verse Daniel 6:20. _HE CRIED WITH A LAMENTABLE VOICE_] His heart, full of grief, affected his speech. _SERVANT OF THE LIVING GOD_] The king was convinced that, unless his God saved him, his destruction was inevitable....

HE CRIED WITH A LAMENTABLE VOICE - A voice full of anxious solicitude. Literally, “a voice of grief.” Such a cry would be natural on such an occasion. O DANIEL, SERVANT OF THE LIVING GOD - The God who has life; who imparts life; and who can preserve life. This was the appellation, probably, which he had heard Daniel use in regard to God, and it is one which he would naturally employ on such an occasion as this; feeling that the question of life was entirely in his hands. WHOM THOU SERVEST CONTINUALLY - At all times, and in all circumstances: as a captive in a distant land; in places of honor and power; when surrounded by the great who worship other gods; and when threatened with death for your devotion to the service of God. This had been the character of Daniel, and it was natural to refer to it now....

EXPOSITION DANIEL 6:1 DANIEL IN THE LIONS' DEN. DANIEL 6:1 IT PLEASED DARIUS TO SET OVER THE KINGDOM AN HUNDRED AND TWENTY PRINCES. WHICH SHOULD BE OVER THE WHOLE KINGDOM; AND OVER THESE THREE PRESIDENTS; OF WHOM DANIEL WAS FIRST: THAT THE PRINCES MIGHT GIVE ACCOUNTS UNTO THEM, AND THE KING SHOULD HAVE NO DAMAGE. THEN THIS DANIEL WAS PREFERRED ABOVE THE PRESIDENTS AND PRINCES, BECAUSE AN EXCELLENT SPIRIT WAS IN HIM; AND THE KING THOUGHT TO SET HIM OVER THE WHOLE REALM. The variations from the Massoretic text in the Septuagint are, in regard to the verses before us, very considerable. It assumes the last verse of the preceding chapter, and begins,

AND WHEN HE CAME TO THE DEN, HE CRIED WITH A LAMENTABLE VOICE UNTO DANIEL,.... Expressing grief and sorrow his heart was full of; it was rather like howling than speaking; thus he cried before he saw Daniel, or heard him speak: WHEN HE WAS NEAR TO THE DEN k, as it may be rendered; and he was between hope and fear about Daniel's safety; when within sight of the den, and hearing of Daniel, should he be alive to speak: but when he came nearer and saw him, then THE KING SPAKE AND SAID TO DANIEL, O DANIEL, SERVANT OF THE LIVING GOD; ART THOU ALIVE? this is a plain case, that the God whom thou servest is the living God, since he has saved thee; and that thou art a true and faithful servant of his, seeing he has wrought such deliverance for thee: IS THY GOD, WHOM THOU SERVEST CONTINUALLY, ABLE TO DELIVER THEE FROM THE LIONS? has he made it to appear that he is able to deliver from them? has...

Daniel 6:1. _It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm._ Kings are never satisfied. The empire of Darius was always growing, and a chapter or two farther on we find that he had a hundred and twenty-seven provinces. There is no end to the greediness of man, and what does he get by it after all? One pair of hands can only do one man's work; he only gains more toils, and he has now to distribute the cares of his State among others. Then how good it is for any man when he is guided to a right, honest, and hearty helper! Such

CHAPTER 6 UNDER DARIUS THE MEDE AND DANIEL IN THE LION'S DEN _ 1. The decree of Darius (Daniel 6:1)_ 2. Daniel's faith and steadfastness (Daniel 6:10) 3. Daniel cast into the lion's den and the deliverance (Daniel 6:16) 4. The Decree of Darius (Daniel 6:25) Daniel 6:1. From the opening of this chapter we learn that Daniel also held a very high position in the beginning of the second monarchy, which had conquered Babylonia. He was preferred above all the other presidents and princes. This created jealousy. They devised a very

DANIEL 6. DANIEL IN THE DEN OF LIONS. After giving an account of the reorganisation of the empire by Darius after the fall of Babylon, this chapter describes a conspiracy formed against Daniel by the princes, which resulted in his being thrown into a den of lions for refusing to obey a decree which forbade prayer to God. Daniel is found alive and unhurt the next morning. His accusers are thrown to the lions and instantly devoured. Darius then issues a decree commanding the whole world to honour the God of Daniel. The purpose of the chapter is obviously to strengthen the Jews in their resistance to the demands of Antiochus Epiphanes. 1. DANIEL 5:31 *. SATRAPS: we have no outside evidence in support of this statement. According to Herodotus the Persian Empire was first divided into twenty satrapies by Darius Hystaspis (522- 485 B.C.)....