Daniel

Daniel 6: The living God keeps Daniel safe

Begin in prayer

Before we read about Daniel in the lions' den, let us ask God to show us that He is the living God, who hears prayer.

As for me, I will call on God. Yahweh will save me. Evening, morning, and at noon, I will cry out in distress. He will hear my voice.

Psalm 55:16-17

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us that You are the living God, who hears and rescues, and help us to see Christ. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

Darius the Mede is king, and he sets three presidents over the kingdom, with Daniel standing out among them. The other officials cannot find any fault in Daniel, except in the law of his God. They have the king sign a decree that for thirty days no one may pray to anyone but him. Daniel keeps praying to his God three times a day, and he is thrown into the den of lions. A stone is sealed over the den, and the king cannot sleep. In the morning Daniel is alive, because God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths.

As you read Daniel 6, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God is the living God who delivers and rescues, and He kept Daniel safe among the lions.

Darius set three presidents over the kingdom, and Daniel stood out because an excellent spirit was in him (verses 2 and 3). The other officials could find no fault in him, except “concerning the law of his God” (verses 4 and 5). So the king signed a law that for thirty days no one could pray to anyone but him (verses 6 to 9). Daniel heard that it was signed, yet he prayed and gave thanks three times a day, “as he did before” (verse 10). Daniel would not stop praying to his God, even when the king's law forbade it. The king wanted to rescue Daniel, but no law of the Medes and Persians could be changed (verses 14 and 15). In the morning Daniel said, “My God has sent his angel, and has shut the lions’ mouths” (verse 22). He was unharmed “because he had trusted in his God” (verse 23). Darius called Him “the living God,” the One who “delivers and rescues” (verses 26 and 27).

How does Daniel 6 show us that God is the living God who delivers and rescues, and that He kept Daniel safe among the lions?

Daniel prayed to his God three times a day.

Darius set Daniel above the other officials because an excellent spirit was in him (verses 2 and 3). They could find no fault in him, except in the law of his God (verses 4 and 5). Then they had the king sign a law against praying to anyone but the king (verses 6 to 9). Daniel went home, opened his window toward Jerusalem, and prayed three times a day, as he did before (verse 10).

God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths.

Daniel was thrown into the den of lions, and a stone was sealed over its mouth (verses 16 and 17). Darius fasted that night and could not sleep (verse 18). In the morning Daniel said, “My God has sent his angel, and has shut the lions’ mouths” (verse 22). No harm was found on him, “because he had trusted in his God” (verse 23).

Darius wrote that the God of Daniel is the living God.

Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations and languages of his kingdom (verse 25). He said that men should tremble and fear before “the God of Daniel” (verse 26). He called Him “the living God,” whose kingdom shall not be destroyed (verse 26). The text says Daniel's accusers were then thrown to the lions (verse 24). Jesus is the Living One, who died and is alive forever (Revelation 1 verses 17 and 18).

Memorise

He delivers and rescues, and he works signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.

Daniel 6:27

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, do I pray to the living God, and do I trust Jesus to save me?

Darius said of the God of Daniel, “He delivers and rescues.” Jesus came into the world to rescue sinners from their sin (1 Timothy 1 verse 15).

Our worst danger is not a den of lions. It is the judgment of a holy God against our sin, and we cannot save ourselves from it. So Jesus was forsaken on the cross for His sheep, and He fully paid their debt. Then He rose and left the tomb.

So come to the living God through His Son. Turn from your sin and put your trust in Jesus. Everyone who believes in Him has their sins forgiven, and they live with God forever.

Parent's note

Tell your children that the living God delivers and rescues, and that Daniel trusted Him. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart. Parents, please explain verse 24 gently, and remember that God does not promise to rescue every servant from every danger.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God that He is the living God who hears His people, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

I call on Yahweh, who is worthy to be praised; and I am saved from my enemies.

Psalm 18:3

Living God, thank You that You hear Your people when they pray. Thank You for the rescue You gave Daniel, and for sending Jesus to rescue sinners. Please bring us to turn from our sin and rest in Him. Amen.