When Daniel's districts out-performed all the others, so that the king considered letting him have authority over all the rest, too; then the others were so jealous of him, and felt their power threatened, that they wanted to get rid of him.
But he was so honest and ethical, there was nothing they could accuse him of to bring him down. The only thing they could think of was how he so irritatingly stuck to worshiping only his own God, and no other!
Ah-ha! Here's something he won't compromise on! Nothing wrong with it, but maybe they can think up something that will make it wrong ...?
(6) Then these commissioners and satraps came by agreement to the king and spoke to him as follows: "King Darius, live forever!
All these high appointed officials came by agreement, which means a conspiracy! Every time you see, by agreement, think, "conspiracy"! They have all conspired to trick the king into doing something that will make him destroy Daniel, and get him out of their way!
(7) "All the commissioners of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the high officials and the governors have consulted together
This is a lie, because "all" the commissioners weren't consulted! Daniel was a commissioner, too. They told the king that "all" his officials agreed.
that the king should establish a statute and enforce an injunction that anyone who makes a petition to any god or man besides you, O king, for thirty days, shall be cast into the lions' den.
This would sound reasonable to this pagan king. This suggested mode would compel every subject in the former Chaldean domain to acknowledge the authority of Persia over them now. Purely political.
(8) "Now, O king, establish the injunction and sign the document so that it may not be changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which may not be revoked."
(9) Therefore King Darius signed the document, that is, the injunction.
We learn here the rigidity of "the law of the Medes and Persians" that it was so indelible, that not even the king himself could change it once it had been signed. No mistakes allowed. No erasures. No changes at all. Ever.
(10) Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously.
Daniel's habit was to pray three times a day in fellowship with God, which gave him his advantage in wisdom. Even when he knew that this edict was in force, he couldn't give up his faith, knowing God as he did. So he courageously took the chance to maintain his daily routine.
(11) Then these men came by agreement and found Daniel making petition and supplication before his God.
Here they are again by agreement carrying out their conspiracy. They knew about Daniel's schedule, so they were lying in wait, to catch him in prayer. I imagine them storming into his upstairs room to accost him like Nazi storm troopers!
Whether they arrested him then and there is not clear, but they did report immediately to the king.
(12) Then they approached and spoke before the king about the king's injunction, "Did you not sign an injunction that any man who makes a petition to any god or man besides you, O king, for thirty days, is to be cast into the lions' den?" The king replied, "The statement is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which may not be revoked."
First they made sure the king realized the full import of this rule, and that it was still in force.
(13) Then they answered and spoke before the king, "Daniel, who is one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or to the injunction which you signed, but keeps making his petition three times a day."
They brought the same charge that had been brought against Daniel's friends years before, in 3:2, "[They] pay no attention to you, O king!"
They represented Daniel's praying as willful disrespect to his king, discounting his devotion to his God entirely.
(14) Then, as soon as the king heard this statement, he was deeply distressed
This is when he probably realized it was a plot they had devised specifically against Daniel. He was the only one who would be seriously affected by this edict, as everyone else were worshiping multiple gods, and it didn't matter if they left off a few for a short time.
and set his mind on delivering Daniel; and even until sunset he kept exerting himself to rescue him.
So he did his darndest to try to exempt Daniel; all day long he did everything he could to try to let him out of the requirement this law exerted.
(15) Then these men came by agreement to the king and said to the king, "Recognize, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no injunction or statute which the king establishes may be changed."
Finally the conspirators confronted the king to force him to destroy Daniel. They made him follow through, forcing his hand. They had succeeded in getting rid of this outsider who threatened their political aspirations.
O my Father, You have said that "No weapon that is formed against you shall prosper" (Isaiah 54: 17), and these men have decided to destroy Your witness to this empire and its king. They did not realize Your power, Father!
My Father, sometimes even Your own children aren't fully aware of Your great power in their own lives! We sometimes say, "Yes, He delivered from fire and lions and let a rock kill a giant, but I'm just little me, I'm no Daniel or David!"
Father, Daniel and Hananiah and Azariah and Mishael and David were only people, just like us! And You are still God! And even Peter walked on water, until he took his eyes off Jesus (Matthew 14: 29-30).
Help us to keep our eyes on You, Father, and trust You even when we don't see an out. Even when we can't figure how it could work out if we do it Your way, strengthen our trust in You to still obey and let You have the situation. Grow our faith, to be able to trust You, like Hananiah, Azariah, and Mishael did when they said, "Even if He does not" deliver us, they were still willing to face the fire (3: 18).
And Daniel knew that he was vulnerable when he decided to continue to worship You. And he worshiped You anyway.
Father, help us to worship You by obeying Your will for us, whether it be in our emotions, or our thought life, or even in our finances. We are vulnerable to the enemy's lies that we "don't have enough" time or money or resources to share. You have promised us to give us everything we need, and You are our Source of everything, no matter what it is: health, time, money, food, emotional margin, whatever. We always have "enough" to give You Yours as well as help our family and neighbors with what they need, and still have enough for ourselves, too.
It's Your promise, and You always are true to Your Word!
And when we trust You even when we can't see, You grow our faith in meeting our needs and wants according to Your generosity from Your great treasures and riches in glory! (Philippians 4: 19).
O Father, You are good! And You are so good to us! You want to shower more blessings on us than we can hold! You lavish Your love upon us in more ways than we can imagine! Please open our eyes to see Your immensity in our daily lives!
And every eye shall see, every knee will bow, every tongue will proclaim that Jesus is our Christ, the Lord God Almighty, sovereign King over all Creation; to the everlasting glory of Almighty God the Father, for ever and ever. Amen.
Even so, come swiftly, Lord Jesus!
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