Posted on 06/24/2025 1:27:59 AM PDT by metmom
“Then these commissioners and satraps came by agreement to the king and spoke to him as follows: ‘King Darius, live forever! All the commissioners of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the high officials and the governors have consulted together 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. 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.’ Therefore King Darius signed the document, that is, the injunction” (Daniel 6:6-9).
Integrity is more precious than flattery.
King David once prayed:
O Lord, lead me in Thy righteousness because of my foes; make Thy way straight before me. There is nothing reliable in what they say; their inward part is destruction itself; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue. Hold them guilty, O God . . . for they are rebellious against Thee. But let all who take refuge in Thee be glad, let them ever sing for joy; and mayest Thou shelter them, that those who love Thy name may exult in Thee. For it is Thou who dost bless the righteous man, O LORD, Thou dost surround him with favor as with a shield. —PSALM 5:8-12 That could have been Daniel’s prayer as well, being surrounded by men who were rebellious against God who and flattered Darius so they could have Daniel put to death. By their own devices they would fall, but not before Daniel’s integrity was tested.
Darius yielded to deceitful flattery, decreeing that he alone could grant petitions. (His ego is reminiscent of Nebuchadnezzar’s [Dan. 3:12].) Daniel, on the other hand, was unyielding in his convictions, and God literally surrounded him with favor as with a shield.
Suggestions for Prayer
Pray that when your faith is tested, you will stand firm and have the assurance that God is surrounding you with His favor.
For Further Study
Psalm 5:12 says that God blesses the righteous man. According to Psalm 64:10 and Psalm 92:12-15, what are some of those blessings?
Studying God’s Word ping
When truth is used to obscure, it often dispels
it’s interesting that the Law was enforced, despite God’s and Darius’ feelings of love for Daniel. God then respects the standards of rule established by each nation (including America’s) and wants them enforced justly vis-a-vis the people and leaders of that nation.
Anyone notice the AI generated counterfeit MacArthur channels that seem to be springing up?
Dietrich Bonhoeffer just might have a differing opinion.
Eberhard Bethge, a student and close friend of Bonhoeffer, writes of a man who saw the execution:
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Excellent point.
And Daniel was miraculously delivered as were his friends from the fiery furnace.
No, although I have heard lots of warnings from Jack Hibbs (Calvary Chapel, Chino Hills) that there are fake AI videos and accounts of him.
I refuse to click on any video that has a source other than the one they endorse. And the fake AI stuff is a good reason. I also don’t want to give hits to someone who is simply reposting their stuff for hits on their site.
I’m in the Book of Daniel in my own private reading right now.
It’s one of my favorite OT Books.
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