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Daniel's Remarkable Deliverance
v. 18. Then the king went to his palace and passed the night fasting, unable to sleep or eat for worry about the fate of Daniel; neither were instruments of music brought before him, rather, "neither were concubines brought to him"; and his sleep went from him, he was in genuine distress, decidedly ill at ease on account of the course into which he had been drawn.
v. 19. Then the king arose very early in the morning, with the dawn, as soon as it became light, and went in haste unto the den of lions, the royal zoological gardens being located conveniently near.
v. 20. And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice, which testified to the sorrow possessing his heart, unto Daniel; and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, whom he was ready to acknowledge as such in accordance with Daniel's confession, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, with constant, unflagging devotion, able to deliver thee from the lions?
v. 21. Then said Daniel unto the king, calmly answering the king from his position down in the pit, O king, live forever!
v. 22. My God hath sent His angel, who may even have been visible to the eye of Daniel, and hath shut the lions' mouths that they have not hurt me, forasmuch as before Him innocency was found in me, God had declared him not guilty by preserving him so wonderfully; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt, that is, by transgressing the edict of the king he had not become guilty of rebellion against the person of the king, as the king's personal interest in his case also demonstrated.
v. 23. Then was the king exceeding glad for him, on account of the miraculous deliverance which Daniel had experienced, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den, through an opening which made it convenient for him to be removed. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, not so much as a scratch from the paw of one of the ravening beasts, because he believed in his God, and this firm confidence was rewarded by the Lord in this manner.
v. 24. And the king, who now realized that the enemies of Daniel had used him as their instrument in trying to vent their jealous spite, 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, according to the custom of the country, and since they were guilty of the same wickedness as the men; and the lions had the mastery of them, fell upon them and overwhelmed them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den, they were reduced to a pulp before their bodies reached the bottom of the pit.
v. 25. Then King Darius, still under the influence of the miraculous deliverance which he had witnessed, wrote unto all people, nations, and languages that dwell in all the earth, in issuing a solemn proclamation, Peace be multiplied unto you.
v. 26. I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom, as far as his kingly power extended, men tremble and fear, in reverent awe, before the God of Daniel; for He is the living God and steadfast forever, eternal and unchanging, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and His dominion shall be even unto the end, outlasting all earthly kingdoms.
v. 27. He delivereth and rescueth, literally, "He is a Deliverer and Rescuer," and He worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, such as are outside the laws of nature, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions, who would ordinarily have torn him to pieces in the twinkling of an eye.
v. 28. So this Daniel, the same one of whom the princes had spoken so contemptuously, prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus, the Persian, for the Persian monarchy followed shortly after the Median. The miracles which the Lord performs in the interest of His children are intended to serve, among other things, for the unbelievers, so that they also may realize that the God of Israel, the God of the Christians, is the true, living God, the only Savior and Redeemer.