D
A N I E L
CHAP. VI.
Daniel
does not give a continued history of the reigns in which he lived, nor of the
state-affairs of the kingdoms of Chaldea
and Persia, though he was himself a great man in those
affairs; for what are those to us? But he selects such particular passages of
story as serve for the confirming of our faith in God and the encouraging of
our obedience to him, for the things written aforetime were written for our
learning. It is a very observable improvable story that we have in this
chapter, how Daniel by faith "stopped the mouths of lions," and so
"obtained a good report," Heb. xi. 33. The three children were cast
into the fiery furnace for not committing a known sin, Daniel was cast into
the lions' den for not omitting a known duty, and God's miraculously
delivering both them and him is left upon record for the encouragement of his
servants in all ages to be resolute and constant both in their abhorrence of
that which is evil and in their adherence to that which is good, whatever it
cost them. In this chapter we have, I. Daniel's preferment in the court of
Darius, ver. 1-3. II. The envy and malice of his enemies against him, ver. 4,
5. III. The decree they obtained against prayer for thirty days, ver. 6-9. IV.
Daniel's continuance and constancy in prayer, notwithstanding that decree,
ver. 10. V. Information given against him for it, and the casting of him into
the den of lions, ver. 11-17. VI. His miraculous preservation in the lions'
den, and deliverance out of it, ver. 18-23. VII. The casting of his accusers
into the den, and their destruction there, ver. 24. VIII. The decree which
Darius made upon this occasion, in honour of the God of Daniel, and the
prosperity of Daniel afterwards, ver. 25-28. And this God is our God for ever
and ever.
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Daniel
Preferred by Darius.
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B.
C. 537.
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1 It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a
hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom;
2 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. 3 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. 4 Then the presidents and princes
sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could
find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was
there any error or fault found in him. 5 Then said these men, We
shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it
against him concerning the law of his God.
We are told concerning Daniel,
I. What a great man he was. When Darius, upon his accession to the
crown of Babylon by conquest, new-modelled the government, he made Daniel
prime-minister of state, set him at the helm, and made him first commissioner
both of the treasury and of the great seal. Darius's dominion was very large;
all he got by his conquests and acquests was that he had so many more
countries to take care of; no more can be expected from himself than what one
man can do, and therefore others must be employed under him. He set over
the kingdom 120 princes (v. 1), and appointed them their districts,
in which they were to administer justice, preserve the public peace, and levy
the king's revenue. Note, Inferior magistrates are ministers of God to us for
good as well as the sovereign; and therefore we must submit ourselves both to
the king as supreme and to the governors that are constituted and commissioned
by him, 1 Pet. ii. 13, 14. Over these princes there was a triumvirate,
or three presidents, who were to take and state the public accounts, to
receive appeals from the princes, or complaints against them in case of
mal-administration, that the king should have no damage (v. 2),
that he should not sustain loss in his revenue and that the power he delegated
to the princes might not be abused to the oppression of the subject, for by
that the king (whether he thinks so or no) receives real damage, both as it
alienates the affections of his people from him and as it provokes the
displeasure of his God against him. Of these three Daniel was chief, because
he was found to go beyond them all in all manner of princely qualifications.
He was preferred above the presidents and princes (v. 3), and so
wonderfully well pleased the king was with his management that he thought
to set him over the whole realm, and let him place and displace at his
pleasure. Now, 1. We must take notice of it to the praise of Darius that he
would prefer a man thus purely for his personal merit, and his fitness for
business; and those sovereigns that would be well served must go by that rule.
Daniel had been a great man in the kingdom that was conquered, and for that
reason, one would think, should have been looked upon as an enemy, and as such
imprisoned or banished. He was a native of a foreign kingdom, and a ruined
one, and upon that account might have been despised as a stranger and captive.
But, Darius, it seems, was very quick-sighted in judging of men's capacities,
and was soon aware that this Daniel had something extraordinary in him, and
therefore, though no doubt he had creatures of his own, not a few, that
expected preferment in this newly-conquered kingdom, and were gaping for it,
and those that had been long his confidants would depend upon it that they
should be now his presidents, yet so well did he consult the public welfare
that, finding Daniel to excel them all in prudence and virtue, and probably
having heard of his being divinely inspired, he made him his right hand. 2. We
must take notice of it, to the glory of God, that, though Daniel was now very
old (it was above seventy years since he was brought a captive to Babylon),
yet he was as able as ever for business both in body and mind, and that he who
had continued faithful to his religion through all the temptations of the
foregoing reigns in a new government was as much respected as ever. He kept in
by being an oak, not by being a willow, by a constancy in virtue, not by a
pliableness to vice. Such honesty is the best policy, for it secures a
reputation; and those who thus honour God he will honour.
II. What a good man he was: An excellent spirit was in him, v.
3. And he was faithful to every trust, dealt fairly between the sovereign and
the subject, and took care that neither should be wronged, so that there was no
error, or fault, to be found in him, v. 4. He was not only
not chargeable with any treachery or dishonesty, but not even with any mistake
or indiscretion. He never made any blunder, nor had any occasion to plead
inadvertency or forgetfulness for his excuse. This is recorded for an example
to all that are in places of public trust to approve themselves both careful
and conscientious, that they may be free, not only from fault, but from error,
not only from crime, but from mistake.
III. What ill-will was borne him, both for his greatness and for his goodness.
The presidents and princes envied him because he was advanced above them, and
probably hated him because he had a watchful eye upon them and took care they
should not wrong the government to enrich themselves. See here, 1. The cause
of envy, and that is every thing that is good. Solomon complains of it as a
vexation that for every right work a man is envied of his neighbour
(Eccl. iv. 4), that the better a man is the worse he is thought of by his
rivals. Daniel is envied because he has a more excellent spirit than his
neighbours. 2. The effect of envy, and that is every thing that is bad. Those
that envied Daniel sought no less than his ruin. His disgrace would not serve
them; it was his death that they desired. Wrath is cruel, and anger is
outrageous, but who can stand before envy? Prov. xxvii. 4. Daniel's
enemies set spies upon him, to observe him in the management of his place;
they sought to find occasion against him, something on which to ground
an accusation concerning the kingdom, some instance of neglect or
partiality, some hasty word spoken, some person borne hard upon, or some
necessary business overlooked. And if they could but have found the mote, the
mole-hill, of a mistake, it would have been soon improved to the beam, to the
mountain, of an unpardonable misdemeanour. But they could find no occasion
against him; they owned that they could not. Daniel always acted honestly,
and now the more warily, and stood the more upon his guard, because of his
observers, Ps. xxvii. 11. Note, We have all need to walk circumspectly,
because we have many eyes upon us, and some that watch for our halting. Those
especially have need to carry their cup even that have it full. They
concluded, at length, that they should not find any occasion against him
except concerning the law of his God v. 5. It seems then that
Daniel kept up the profession of his religion, and held it fast without
wavering or shrinking, and yet that was no bar to his preferment; there was no
law that required him to be of the king's religion, or incapacitated him to
bear office in the state unless he were. It was all one to the king what God
he prayed to, so long as he did the business of his place faithfully and well.
He was at the king's service usque ad aras--as far as the altars; but
there he left him. In this matter therefore his enemies hoped to ensnare him. Quærendum
est crimen læsæ religionis ubi majestatis deficit--When treason could not be
charged upon him he was accused of impiety. Grotius. Note, It is an
excellent thing, and much for the glory of God, when those who profess
religion conduct themselves so inoffensively in their whole conversation that
their most watchful spiteful enemies may find no occasion of blaming them,
save only in the matters of their God, in which they walk according to their
consciences. It is observable that, when Daniel's enemies could find no
occasion against him concerning the kingdom, they had so much sense of justice
left that they did not suborn witnesses against him to accuse him of crimes he
was innocent of, and to swear treason upon him, wherein they shame many that
were called Jews and are called Christians.
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A
Plot against Daniel.
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B.
C. 537.
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6 Then these presidents and princes assembled
together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for
ever. 7 All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the
princes, the counsellors, and the captains, 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
be cast into the den of lions. 8 Now, O king, establish the
decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of
the Medes and Persians, which altereth not. 9 Wherefore king
Darius signed the writing and the decree. 10 Now when Daniel knew
that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being
open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a
day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
Daniel's adversaries could have no advantage against him from any law now in
being; they therefore contrive a new law, by which they hope to ensnare him,
and in a matter in which they knew they should be sure of him; and such was
his fidelity to his God that they gained their point. Here is,
I. Darius's impious law. I call it Darius's, because he gave the royal
assent to it, and otherwise it would not have been of force; but it was not
properly his: he contrived it not, and was perfectly wheedled to consent to
it. The presidents and princes framed the edict, brought in the bill, and by
their management it was agreed to by the convention of the states, who perhaps
were met at this time upon some public occasion. It is pretended that this
bill which they would have to pass into a law was the result of mature
deliberation, that all the presidents of the kingdom, the governors,
princes, counsellors, and captains, had consulted together about it, and
that they not only agreed to it, but advised it, for divers good
causes and considerations, that they had done what they could to establish
it for a firm decree; nay, they intimate to the king that it was carried nemine
contradicente--unanimously: "All the presidents are of this
mind;" and yet we are sure that Daniel, the chief of the three
presidents, did not agree to it, and have reason to think that many more of
the princes excepted against it as absurd and unreasonable. Note, It is no new
thing for that to be represented, and with great assurance too, as the sense
of the nation, which is far from being so; and that which few approve of is
sometimes confidently said to be that which all agree to. But, O the
infelicity of kings, who, being under a necessity of seeing and hearing with
other people's eyes and ears, are often wretchedly imposed upon! These
designing men, under colour of doing honour to the king, but really intending
the ruin of his favourite, press him to pass this into a law, and make it a
royal statute, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for
thirty days, save of the king, shall be put to death after the most
barbarous manner, shall be cast into the den of lions, v. 7.
This is the bill they have been hatching, and they lay it before the king to
be signed and passed into a law. Now, 1. There is nothing in it that has the
least appearance of good, but that it magnifies the king, and makes him seem
both very great and very kind to his subjects, which, they suggest, will be of
good service to him now that he has newly come to his throne, and will confirm
his interests. All men must be made to believe that the king is so rich, and
withal so ready to all petitioners, that none in any want or distress need to
apply either to God or man for relief, but to him only. And for thirty days
together he will be ready to give audience to all that have any petition to
present to him. It is indeed much for the honour of kings to be benefactors to
their subjects and to have their ears open to their complaints and requests;
but if they pretend to be their sole benefactors, and undertake to be to them
instead of God, and challenge that respect from them which is due to God only,
it is their disgrace, and not their honour. But, 2. There is a great deal in
it that is apparently evil. It is bad enough to forbid asking a petition of
any man. Must not a beggar ask an alms, or one neighbour beg a kindness of
another? If the child want bread, must he not ask it of his parents, or be
cast into the den of lions if he do? Nay, those that have business with the
king, may they not petition those about him to introduce them? But it was much
worse, and an impudent affront to all religion, to forbid asking a petition of
any god. It is by prayer that we give glory to God, fetch in mercy from
God; and so keep up our communion with God; and to interdict prayer for thirty
days is for so long to rob God of all the tribute he has from man and to rob
man of all the comfort he has in God. When the light of nature teaches us that
the providence of God has the ordering and disposing of all our affairs does
not the law of nature oblige us by prayer to acknowledge God and seek to him?
Does not every man's heart direct him, when he is in want or distress, to call
upon God, and must this be made high treason? We could not live a day without
God; and can men live thirty days without prayer? Will the king himself be
tied up for so long from praying to God; or, if it be allowed him, will he
undertake to do it for all his subjects? Did ever any nation thus slight their
gods? But see what absurdities malice will drive men to. Rather than not bring
Daniel into trouble for praying to his God, they will deny themselves and all
their friends the satisfaction of praying to theirs. Had they proposed only to
prohibit the Jews from praying to their God, Daniel would have been as
effectually ensnared; but they knew the king would not pass such a law, and
therefore made it thus general. And the king, puffed up with a fancy that this
would set him up as a little god, was fond of the feather in his cap
(for so it was, and not a flower in his crown) and signed the
writing and the decree (v. 9), which, being once done, according to
the constitution of the united kingdom of the Medes and Persians, was not upon
any pretence whatsoever to be altered or dispensed with, or the breach of it
pardoned.
II. Daniel's pious disobedience to this law, v. 10. He did not retire
into the country, nor abscond for some time, though he knew the law was
levelled against him; but, because he knew it was so, therefore he stood his
ground, knowing that he had now a fair opportunity of honouring God before
men, and showing that he preferred his favour, and his duty to him, before
life itself. When Daniel knew that the writing was signed he might have
gone to the king, and expostulated with him about it; nay, he might have
remonstrated against it, as grounded upon a misinformation that all the
presidents had consented to it, whereas he that was chief of them had
never been consulted about it; but he went to his house, and applied
himself to his duty, cheerfully trusting God with the event. Now observe,
1. Daniel's constant practice, which we were not informed of before this
occasion, but which we have reason to think was the general practice of the
pious Jews. (1.) He prayed in his house, sometimes alone and sometimes
with his family about him, and made a solemn business of it. Cornelius was a
man that prayed in his house, Acts x. 30. Note, Every house not only
may be, but ought to be, a house of prayer; where we have a tent God must have
an alter, and on it we must offer spiritual sacrifices. (2.) In every prayer
he gave thanks. When we pray to God for the mercies we want we must praise him
for those we have received. Thanksgiving must be a part of every prayer. (3.)
In his prayer and thanksgiving he had an eye to God as his God, his in
covenant, and set himself as in his presence. He did this before his God,
and with a regard to him. (4.) When he prayed and gave thanks he kneeled
upon his knees, which is the most proper gesture in prayer, and most
expressive of humility, and reverence, and submission to God. Kneeling is a
begging posture, and we come to God as beggars, beggars for our lives, whom it
concerns to be importunate. (5.) He opened the windows of his chamber,
that the sight of the visible heavens might affect his heart with an awe of
that God who dwells above the heavens; but that was not all: he opened them
towards Jerusalem, the holy city, though now in ruins, to signify the
affection he had for its very stones and dust (Ps. cii. 14) and the
remembrance he had of its concerns daily in his prayers. Thus, though he
himself lived great in Babylon, yet he testified his concurrence with the
meanest of his brethren the captives, in remembering Jerusalem and preferring
it before his chief joy, Ps. cxxxvii. 5, 6. Jerusalem was the place
which God had chosen to put his name there; and, when the temple was
dedicated, Solomon's prayer to God was that if his people should in the
land of their enemies pray unto him with their eye towards the land which
he gave them, and the city he had chosen, and the house which was built to his
name, then he would hear and maintain their cause (1 Kings viii.
48, 49), to which prayer Daniel had reference in this circumstance of his
devotions. (6.) He did this three times a day, three times every day
according to the example of David (Ps. lv. 17), Morning, evening, and at
noon, I will pray. It is good to have our hours of prayer, not to bind,
but to remind conscience; and, if we think our bodies require refreshment by
food thrice a day, can we think seldomer will serve our souls? This is surely
as little as may be to answer the command of praying always. (7.) He
did this so openly and avowedly that all who knew him knew it to be his
practice; and he thus showed it, not because he was proud of it (in the place
where he was there was no room for that temptation, for it was not reputation,
but reproach, that attended it), but because he was not ashamed of it. Though
Daniel was a great man, he did not think it below him to be thrice a day upon
his knees before his Maker and to be his own chaplain; though he was an old
man, he did not think himself past it; nor, though it had been his practice
from his youth up, was he weary of this well doing. Though he was a man of
business, vast business, for the service of the public, he did not think that
would excuse him from the daily exercises of devotion. How inexcusable then
are those who have but little to do in the world, and yet will not do thus
much for God and their souls! Daniel was a man famous for prayer, and for
success in it (Ezek. xiv. 14), and he came to be so by thus making a
conscience of prayer and making a business of it daily; and in thus doing God
blessed him wonderfully.
2. Daniel's constant adherence to this practice, even when it was made by the
law a capital crime. When he knew that the writing was signed he
continued to do as he did aforetime, and altered not one circumstance
of the performance. Many a man, yea, and many a good man, would have thought
it prudence to omit it for these thirty days, when he could not do it without
hazard of his life; he might have prayed so much oftener when those days had
expired and the danger was over, or he might have performed the duty at
another time, and in another place, so secretly that it should not be possible
for his enemies to discover it; and so he might both satisfy his conscience
and keep up his communion with God, and yet avoid the law, and continue in his
usefulness. But, if he had done so, it would have been thought, both by his
friends and by his enemies, that he had thrown up the duty for this time,
through cowardice and base fear, which would have tended very much to the
dishonour of God and the discouragement of his friends. Others who moved in a
lower sphere might well enough act with caution; but Daniel, who had so many
eyes upon him, must act with courage; and the rather because he knew that the
law, when it was made, was particularly levelled against him. Note, We must
not omit duty for fear of suffering, so, nor so much as seems to come short
of it. In trying times great stress is laid upon our confessing Christ
before men (Matt. x. 32), and we must take heed lest, under pretence of
discretion, we be found guilty of cowardice in the cause of God. If we do not
think that this example of Daniel obliges us to do likewise, yet I am sure it
forbids us to censure those that do, for God owned him in it. By his constancy
to his duty it now appears that he had never been used to admit any excuse for
the omission of it; for, if ever any excuse would serve to put it by, this
would have served now, (1.) That it was forbidden by the king his master, and
in honour of the king too; but it is an undoubted maxim, in answer to that, We
are to obey God rather than men. (2.) That it would be the loss of his life,
but it is an undoubted maxim, in answer to that, Those who throw away their
souls (as those certainly do that live without prayer) to save their lives
make but a bad bargain for themselves; and though herein they make themselves,
like the king of Tyre, wiser than Daniel, at their end they will be
fools.
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Daniel
in the Den of Lions.
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B.
C. 537.
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11 Then these men assembled, and found Daniel
praying and making supplication before his God. 12 Then they came
near, and spake before the king concerning the king's decree; Hast thou not
signed a decree, that every man that shall ask a petition of any God or
man within thirty days, save of 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. 13 Then
answered they and said before the king, 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.
14 Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore displeased with
himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him: and he laboured
till the going down of the sun to deliver him. 15 Then these men
assembled unto the king, and said unto the king, Know, O king, that the law of
the Medes and Persians is, That no decree nor statute which the king
establisheth may be changed. 16 Then 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. 17 And 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 the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel.
Here is 1. Proof made of Daniel's praying to his God, notwithstanding the late
edict to the contrary (v. 11): These men assembled; the came
tumultuously together, so the word is, the same that was used v. 6,
borrowed from Ps. ii. 1, Why do the heathen rage? They came together to
visit Daniel, perhaps under pretence of business, at that time which they knew
to be his usual hour of devotion; and, if they had not found him so engaged,
they would have upbraided him with his faint-heartedness and distrust of his
God, but (which they rather wished to do) they found him on his knees
praying and making supplication before his God. For his love they are
his adversaries; but, like his father David, he gives himself unto
prayer, Ps. cix. 4. 2. Complaint made of it to the king. When they had
found occasion against Daniel concerning the law of his God they lost
no time, but applied to the king (v. 12), and having appealed to his
whether there was not such a law made, and gained from him a recognition of
it, and that it was so ratified that it might not be altered, they proceeded
to accuse Daniel, v. 13. They so describe him, in the information they
give, as to exasperate the king and incense him the more against him: "He
is of the children of the captivity of Judah; he is of Judah, that
despicable people, and now a captive in a despicable state, that can call
nothing his own but what he has by the king's favour, and yet he regards
not thee, O king! nor the decree that thou hast signed." Note, It is
no new thing for that which is done faithfully, in the conscience towards God,
to be misrepresented as done obstinately and in contempt of the civil powers,
that is, for the best saints to be reproached as the worst men. Daniel
regarded God, and therefore prayed, and we have reason to think prayed for the
king and his government, yet this is construed as not regarding the king. That
excellent spirit which Daniel was endued with, and that established reputation
which he had gained, could not protect him from these poisonous darts. They do
not say, He makes his petition to his God, lest Darius should take notice of
that to his praise, but only, He makes his petition, which is the thing
the law forbids. 3. The great concern the king was in hereupon. He now
perceived that, whatever they pretended, it was not to honour him, but in
spite to Daniel, that they had proposed that law, and now he is sorely
displeased with himself for gratifying them in it, v. 14. Note,
When men indulge a proud vain-glorious humour, and please themselves with that
which feeds it, they know not what vexations they are preparing for
themselves; their flatterers may prove their tormentors, and are but spreading
a net for their feet. Now, the king sets his heart to deliver Daniel;
both by argument and by authority he labours till the going down of the sun
to deliver him, that is, to persuade his accusers not to insist upon
his prosecution. Note, We often do that, through inconsideration, which
afterwards we see cause a thousand times to wish undone again, which is a good
reason why we should ponder the path of our feet, for then all our
ways will be established. 4. The violence with which the prosecutors
demanded judgment, v. 15. We are not told what Daniel said; the king
himself is his advocate, he needs not plead his own cause, but silently
commits himself and it to him that judges righteously. But the prosecutors
insist upon it that the law must have its course; it is a fundamental maxim in
the constitution of the government of the Medes and Persians, which had now
become the universal monarchy, that no decree or statute which the king
establishes may be changed. The same we find Esth. i. 19; viii. 8. The
Chaldeans magnified the will of their king, by giving him a power to make and
unmake laws at his pleasure, to slay and keep alive whom he would. The
Persians magnified the wisdom of their king, by supposing that whatever law he
solemnly ratified it was so well made that there could be no occasion to alter
it, or dispense with it, as if any human foresight could, in framing a law,
guard against all inconveniences. But, if this maxim be duly applied to
Daniel's case (as I am apt to think it is not, but perverted), while it
honours the king's legislative power it hampers his executive power, and
incapacitates him to show that mercy which upholds the throne, and to pass
acts of indemnity, which are the glories of a reign. Those who allow not the
sovereign's power to dispense with a disabling statute, yet never question his
power to pardon an offence against a penal statute. But Darius is denied this
power. See what need we have to pray for princes that God would give them
wisdom, for they are often embarrassed with great difficulties, even the
wisest and best are. 5. The executing of the law upon Daniel. The king
himself, with the utmost reluctance, and against his conscience, signs the
warrant for his execution; and Daniel, that venerable grave man, who carried
such a mixture of majesty and sweetness in his countenance, who had so often
looked great upon the bench, and at the council-board, and greater upon his
knees, who had power with God and man, and had prevailed, is brought, purely
for worshipping his God, as if he had been one of the vilest of malefactors,
and thrown into the den of lions, to be devoured by them, v. 16.
One cannot think of it without the utmost compassion to the gracious sufferer
and the utmost indignation at the malicious prosecutors. To make sure work,
the stone laid upon the mouth of the den is sealed, and the king
(an over-easy man) is persuaded to seal it with his own signet (v.
17), that unhappy signet with which he had confirmed the law that Daniel falls
by. But his lords cannot trust him, unless they add their signets too. Thus,
when Christ was buried, his adversaries sealed the stone that was
rolled to the door of his sepulchre. 6. The encouragement which Darius gave to
Daniel to trust in God: Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will
deliver thee, v. 16. Here (1.) He justifies Daniel from guilt,
owning all his crime to be serving his God continually, and continuing to do
so even when it was made a crime. (2.) He leaves it to God to free him from
punishment, since he could not prevail to do it: He will deliver thee.
He is sure that his God can deliver him, for he believes him to be an almighty
God, and he has reason to think he will do it, having heard of his delivering
Daniel's companions in a like case from the fiery furnace, and concluding him
to be always faithful to those who approve themselves faithful to him. Note,
Those who serve God continually he will continually preserve, and will bear
them out in his service.
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Daniel's
Preservation and Deliverance.
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B.
C. 537.
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18 Then the king went to his palace, and passed
the night fasting: neither were instruments of music brought before him: and
his sleep went from him. 19 Then the king arose very early in the
morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions. 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?
21 Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live for ever. 22 My
God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that 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. 23 Then was the king exceeding
glad for him, 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 believed in his God. 24 And the king commanded, and
they brought those men which 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 or ever they came
at the bottom of the den.
Here is, I. The melancholy night which the king had, upon Daniel's account, v.
18. He had said, indeed, that God would deliver him out of the danger, but at
the same time he could not forgive himself for throwing him into the danger;
and justly might God deprive him of a friend whom he had himself used so
barbarously. He went to his palace, vexed at himself for what he had
done, and calling himself unwise and unjust for not adhering to the law of God
and nature with a non obstante--a negative to the law of the Medes and
Persians. He ate no supper, but passed the night fasting; his heart was
already full of grief and fear. He forbade the music; nothing is more
unpleasing that songs sung to a heavy heart. He went to bed, but got no sleep,
was full of tossings to and fro till the dawning of the day. Note, the
best way to have a good night is to keep a good conscience, then we may lie
down in peace.
II. The solicitous enquiry he made concerning Daniel the next morning, v.
19, 20. He was up early, very early; for how could he lie in bed when
he could not sleep for dreaming of Daniel, nor lie awake quietly for thinking
of him? And he was no sooner up than he went in haste to the den of lions,
for he could not satisfy himself to send a servant (that would not
sufficiently testify his affection for Daniel), nor had he patience to stay so
long as till a servant would return. When he comes to the den, not without
some hopes that God had graciously undone what he had wickedly done, he cries,
with a lamentable voice, as one full of concern and trouble, O
Daniel! art thou alive? He longs to know, yet trembles to ask the
question, fearing to be answered with the roaring of the lions after more
prey: O Daniel! servant of the living God, has thy God whom thou
servest made it to appear that he is able to deliver thee from the
lions? If he rightly understood himself when he called him the living
God, he could not doubt of his ability to keep Daniel alive, for he that
has life in himself quickens whom he will; but has he thought fit in this case
to exert his power? What he doubted of we are sure of, that the servants of
the living God have a Master who is well able to protect them and bear
them out in his service.
III. The joyful news he meets with-that Daniel is alive, is safe, and well,
and unhurt in the lions' den, v. 21, 22. Daniel knew the king's voice,
though it was now a lamentable voice, and spoke to him with all the deference
and respect that were due to him: O king! live for ever. He does not
reproach him for his unkindness to him, and his easiness in yielding to the
malice of his persecutors; but, to show that he has heartily forgiven him, he
meets him with his good wishes. Note, We should not upbraid those with the
diskindnesses they have done us who, we know, did them with reluctance, and
are very ready to upbraid themselves with them. The account Daniel gives the
king is very pleasant; it is triumphant. 1. God has preserved his life by a
miracle. Darius had called him Daniel's god (thy God whom thou servest),
to which Daniel does as it were echo back, Yea, he is my God, whom I
own, and who owns me, for he has sent his angel. The same bright and
glorious being that was seen in the form of the Son of God with the
three children in the fiery furnace had visited Daniel, and, it is likely, in
a visible appearance had enlightened the dark den, and kept Daniel company all
night, and had shut the lions' mouths, that they had not in the least hurt
him. The angel's presence made even the lions' den his strong-hold, his
palace, his paradise; he had never had a better night in his life. See the
power of God over the fiercest creatures, and believe his power to restrain
the roaring lion that goes about continually seeking to devour from
hurting those that are his. See the care God takes of his faithful
worshippers, especially when he calls them out to suffer for him. If he keeps
their souls from sin, comforts their souls with his peace, and receives their
souls to himself, he does in effect stop the lions' mouths, that they
cannot hurt them. See how ready the angels are to minister for the good of
God's people, for they own themselves their fellow servants. 2. God has
therein pleaded his cause. He was represented to the king as disaffected to
him and his government. We do not find that he said any thing in his own
vindication, but left it to God to clear up his integrity as the light; and he
did it effectually, by working a miracle for his preservation. Daniel, in what
he had done, had not offended either God or the king: Before him whom I
prayed to innocency was found in me. He pretends not to a meritorious
excellence, but the testimony of his conscience concerning his sincerity is
his comfort--As also that before thee, O king! I have done no hurt, nor
designed thee any affront.
IV. The discharge of Daniel from his confinement. His prosecutors cannot but
own that the law is satisfied, though they are not, or, if it be altered, it
is by a power superior to that of the Medes and Persians; and therefore no
cause can be shown why Daniel should not be fetched out of the den (v.
23): The king was exceedingly glad to find him alive, and gave orders
immediately that they should take him out of the den, as Jeremiah out
of the dungeon; and, when they searched, no manner of hurt was found upon
him; he was nowhere crushed nor scarred, but was kept perfectly well, because
he believed in his God. Note, Those who boldly and cheerfully trust in God
to protect them in the way of their duty shall never be made ashamed of their
confidence in him, but shall always find him a present help.
V. The committing of his prosecutors to the same prison, or place of execution
rather, v. 24. Darius is animated by this miracle wrought for Daniel,
and now begins to take courage and act like himself. Those that would not
suffer him to show mercy to Daniel shall, now that God has done it for him, be
made to feel his resentments; and he will do justice for God who had shown
mercy for him. Daniel's accusers, now that his innocency is cleared, and
Heaven itself has become his compurgator, have the same punishment inflicted
upon them which they designed against him, according to the law of retaliation
made against false accusers, Deut. xix. 18, 19. Such they were to be reckoned
now that Daniel was proved innocent; for, though the fact was true, yet it was
not a fault. They were cast into the den of lions, which perhaps was a
punishment newly invented by themselves; however, it was what they maliciously
designed for Daniel. Nec lex est justior ulla quàm necis artifices arte
perire suâ--No law can be more just than that which adjudges the devisers of
barbarity to perish by it, Ps. vii. 15, 16; ix. 15, 16. And now Solomon's
observation is verified (Prov. xi. 8), The righteous is delivered out of
trouble, and the wicked cometh in his stead. In this execution we
may observe, 1. The king's severity, in ordering their wives and children to
be thrown to the lions with them. How righteous are God's statutes above those
of the nations! for God commanded that the children should not die for the
fathers' crimes, Deut. xxiv. 16. Yet they were put to death in extraordinary
cases, as those of Achan, and Saul, and Haman. 2. The lion's fierceness. They
had the mastery of them immediately, and tore them to pieces before
they came to the bottom of the den. This verified and magnified the
miracle of their sparing Daniel; for hereby it appeared that it was not
because they had not appetite, but because they had not leave. Mastiffs that
are kept muzzled are the more fierce when the muzzle is taken off; so were
these lions. And the Lord is known by those judgments which he executes.
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The
Decree of Darius.
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B.
C. 537.
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25 Then king Darius wrote unto all people,
nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto
you. 26 I make a decree, That in every 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. 27
He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in
earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. 28
So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the
Persian.
Darius here studies to make some amends for the dishonour he had done both to
God and Daniel, in casting Daniel into the lions' den, by doing honour to
both.
I. He gives honour to God by a decree published to all nations, by which they
are required to fear before him. And this is a decree which is indeed fit to
be made unalterable, according to the laws of the Medes and Persians, for it
is the everlasting gospel, preached to those that dwell on the
earth, Rev. xiv. 7. Fear God, and give glory to him. Observe, 1. To
whom he sends this decree--to all people, nations and languages, that dwell
in all the earth, v. 25. These are great words, and it is true that
all the inhabitants of the earth are obliged to that which is here decreed;
but here they mean no more than every dominion of his kingdom, which,
though it contained many nations, did not contain all nations; but so it is,
those that have much are ready to think they have all. 2. What the matter of
the decree is--that men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. This
goes further than Nebuchadnezzar's decree upon a similar occasion, for that
only restrained people from speaking amiss of this God, but this
requires them to fear before him, to keep up and express awful reverent
thoughts of him. And well might this decree he prefaced, as it is, with Peace
be multiplied unto you, for the only foundation of true and abundant peace
is laid in the fear of God, for that is true wisdom. If we live in the fear of
God, and walk according to that rule, peace shall be upon us, peace shall be
multiplied to us. But, though this decree goes far, it does not go far enough;
had he done right, and come up to his present convictions, he would have
commanded all men not only to tremble and fear before this God, but to love
him and trust in him, to forsake the service of their idols, and to worship
him only, and call upon him as Daniel did. But idolatry had been so long and
so deeply rooted that it was not to be extirpated by the edicts of princes,
nor by any power less than that which went along with the glorious gospel of
Christ. 3. What are the causes and considerations moving him to make this
decree. They are sufficient to have justified a decree for the total
suppression of idolatry, much more will they serve to support this. There is
good reason why all men should fear before this God, for, (1.) His being is
transcendent. "He is the living God, lives as a God, whereas the
gods we worship are dead things, have not so much as an animal life."
(2.) His government is incontestable. He has a kingdom, and a dominion;
he not only lives, but reigns as an absolute sovereign. (3.) Both his being
and his government are unchangeable. He is himself stedfast for ever,
and with him is no shadow of turning. And his kingdom too is that
which shall not be destroyed by any external force, nor has his dominion
any thing in itself that threatens a decay or tends towards it, and therefore
it shall be even to the end. (4.) He has an ability sufficient to
support such an authority, v. 27. He delivers his faithful servants
from trouble and rescues them out of trouble; he works signs and wonders,
quite above the utmost power of nature to effect, both in heaven and on
earth, by which it appears that he is sovereign Lord of both. (5.) He has
given a fresh proof of all this in delivering his servant Daniel
from the power of the lions. This miracle, and that of the delivering of
the three children, were wrought in the eyes of the world, were seen,
published, and attested by two of the greatest monarchs that ever were, and
were illustrious confirmations of the first principles of religion, abstracted
from the narrow scheme of Judaism, effectual confutations of all the errors of
heathenism, and very proper preparations for pure catholic Christianity.
II. He puts honour upon Daniel (v. 28): So this Daniel prospered.
See how God brought to him good out of evil. This bold stroke which his
enemies made at his life was a happy occasion of taking them off, and their
children too, who otherwise would still have stood in the way of his
preferment, and have been upon all occasions vexatious to him; and now he prospered
more than ever, was more in favour with his prince and in reputation with
the people, which gave him a great opportunity of doing good to his brethren.
Thus out of the eater (and that was a lion too) comes forth meat,
and out of the strong sweetness.
Contents
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Next
Section
