Daniel 6

Hebrews 11: 33 "Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,

34 Quenched the violence of fire,"

Psalm 57: 4 I am in the midst of lions; I lie among ravenous beasts-- men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.

Psalm 58: 6 Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O LORD.

Judges: 14: 5 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.

6 And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.

5:31 Darius: center of controversy as to his existence

"received the kingdom" opens the door to the possibility of an appointment. See also, 9:1 where Darius is "made King" is in the passive voice.

6:1 Re-organization of the vast kingdom: law and order; taxation; regulations for business

Esther 1:1 states there were 127 provinces: It is obvious that 120 official were needed

2. Daniel is appointed as first among 3 presidents over the 120 princes set to rule Babylon

Princes: required to give financial reports and protect the kings interest

3. Daniel’s named outstanding: quality of note is "an excellent spirit was in him"

4. Daniel’s integrity could not be corrupted

Other princes became jealous

Ecc. 4: 4 Again, I considered all travail, and every right work, that for this a man is envied of his neighbour. This is also vanity and vexation of spirit.

He was faithful:

Luke 20: 22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no?

23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why tempt ye me?

24 Show me a penny. Whose image and superscription hath it? They answered and said, Caesar's.

25 And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar's, and unto God the things which be God's.

Romans 13

I Peter 2:13

Matt. 25: 21 His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things,

Laws of the Medes and Persians could not be altered

8. Esther 1: 19 If it please the king, let there go a royal commandment from him, and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and the Medes, that it be not altered, That Vashti come no more before king Ahasuerus; and let the king give her royal estate unto another that is better than she.

8: 8 Write ye also for the Jews, as it liketh you, in the king's name, and seal it with the king's ring: for the writing which is written in the king's name, and sealed with the king's ring, may no man reverse.

10. Daniel did not let the law increase or decrease the prayer life he already had established.

RSV implies he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem

David prayed three times a day

Psalm 55: 17 Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.

Why pray towards Jerusalem?

Solomon’s prayer of 2 Chronicles 6:36 and 1 Kings 8 at the dedication of the temple

2 Chron. 6: 36 If they sin against thee, (for there is no man which sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them over before their enemies, and they carry them away captives unto a land far off or near;

37 Yet if they bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn and pray unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have done amiss, and have dealt wickedly;

38 If they return to thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, whither they have carried them captives, and pray toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for thy name:

39 Then hear thou from the heavens, even from thy dwelling place, their prayer and their supplications, and maintain their cause, and forgive thy people which have sinned against thee.

This held until Jesus’ new instructions regarding prayer:

John 4: 20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.

21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.

22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.

23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Daniel was a student of the book of Jeremiah

Jer. 29:1 Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders which were carried away captives, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon;

Jer. 29: 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.

13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you," declares the LORD, "and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile."

13. Their bias is betrayed by their references to Daniel not as a president but as "of the children of the captivity of Judah."

14. Darius’ reaction is the opposite of Nebuchadnezzar’s

17. Note the parallel with the following:

Matt. 27: 62 The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate.

63 "Sir," they said, "we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise again.'

64 So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first."

65 "Take a guard," Pilate answered. "Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how."

66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

24. Daniel’s accusers were killed by their own trap (e.g. Hamen of Esther)

God’s faithfulness to the Arahamic covenant –

Gen. 12: 3 And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

28. "AND" could possibly be translated as "even" therefore, referring to Darius as the same person as Cyrus

Daniel prospered:

Joshua 1: 8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

1 Chron. 22: 13 Then shalt thou prosper, if thou takest heed to fulfil the statutes and judgments which the LORD charged Moses with concerning Israel: be strong, and of good courage; dread not, nor be dismayed.

Psa. 1:1-3

Daniel was a student of the Word (9:2)

Daniel prayed regularly 6:10

Integrity:

1 Kings 9: 4 "As for you, if you walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws,

5 I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I promised David your father when I said, 'You shall never fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.'

Daniel’s test of Integrity

Ch.	Test	Result
1	Not defile himself with the King’s food	Head of the class
2	Prayer or ingenuity	Made the head over the wise men
3	Bow or burn	Promotion
4	Confront or Retreat	Conversion of Neb
5	Confront or Retreat	Temporary Reward
6	Hide or Seek God	Daniel prospered