Daniel 6

Daniel and the officials of Darius

¹And Darius the Mede took over the kingdom when he was about sixty-two years old.^{ab 2}Darius decided to appoint 120 satraps to rule throughout the kingdom,^{c 3}and over them three high officials, one of whom was Daniel. The satraps were to report to them, so that the king would not suffer loss. ⁴Now Daniel distinguished himself above the other high officials and the satraps because of the extraordinary spirit in him, and the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. ⁵So the high officials and the satraps tried to find grounds for a charge against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they could find no grounds and no corruption, because he was trustworthy; no negligence or corruption could be found in him. ⁶Then these men said, “We will never find any grounds for a charge against this Daniel unless it has to do with the law of his God.”

The king’s ban

⁷So these high officials and satraps went as a group to the king and said to him, “King Darius, may you live forever! ⁸All the high officials of the kingdom, the prefects and satraps, the advisers and governors, have agreed that the king should issue a decree and enforce a ban: anyone who prays to any god or human being for the next thirty days, except to you, O king, will be thrown into the lions’ den. ⁹Now, O king, issue the ban and sign it in writing, so that it cannot be changed, as is the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.” ¹⁰So King Darius signed the written ban. ¹¹When Daniel learned that the decree had been signed, he went home to his upstairs room, where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had always done.

Daniel in the lions’ den

¹²Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking his God for help. ¹³So they went to the king and spoke to him about his ban: “O king, did you not sign a ban saying that anyone who prays to any god or human being for thirty days, except to you, would be thrown into the lions’ den?” The king answered, “That decree stands, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.” ¹⁴Then they said to the king, “Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or to the ban you signed. He still prays three times a day.” ¹⁵When the king heard this, he was deeply distressed. He was determined to save Daniel, and until sunset he tried everything he could to rescue him. ¹⁶Then these men went as a group to the king and said, “Do not forget, O king, that under the law of the Medes and Persians no ban or decree the king issues can be changed.” ¹⁷So the king gave the order, and Daniel was brought and thrown into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve faithfully, rescue you!” ¹⁸Then a stone was brought and set over the opening of the den. The king sealed it with his own ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel’s sentence could not be changed. ¹⁹Then the king went back to his palace and spent the night without eating. He allowed no entertainment to be brought to him, and he could not sleep.^{d 20}At daybreak, as soon as it was light, the king rose and went in haste to the lions’ den. ²¹When he came near the den, he called out to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Has your God, whom you faithfully serve, been able to rescue you from the lions?” ²²Then Daniel answered the king, “O king, may you live forever! ²³My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, and they have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. And I have done nothing wrong before you either, O king.” ²⁴The king was overjoyed and ordered that Daniel be lifted out of the den. So Daniel was lifted out, and no injury of any kind was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. ²⁵Then at the king’s command the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought in and thrown into the lions’ den, together with their children and their wives. They had not yet reached the floor of the den when the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones. ²⁶Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations and people of every language who live in all the earth: “May you have abundant peace! ²⁷I decree that in every part of my kingdom \q people must tremble with fear \q before the God of Daniel, \q because he is the living God, who endures forever; \q his kingdom will never be destroyed, \q and his rule will never end. ²⁸He saves and rescues; he does signs and wonders \q in heaven and on earth. \q He has rescued Daniel \q from the power of the lions.” ²⁹So Daniel prospered during the reigns of Darius and of Cyrus the Persian.^e