Daniel 6
Despite the change of government Daniel continued to enjoy favour.
The Persian empire, which incorporated that of the Medes, a vast area forming an arc to the north of the Babylonian territories, extended eventually to Asia Minor, Libya and Egypt to the west, and to the Indus river and the Aral Sea to the east. It was the largest empire the world had yet seen, hence the urgent need for an efficient organization from the very beginning.
6:3 distinguishing himself In addition to wisdom and the ability to interpret dreams, Daniel possessed great political skill. This set him apart from his colleagues (see 1:20; 5:12).
an exceptional spirit Daniel’s excellent spirit contributed to his advancement in the foreign court. Although he is recognized early for his natural abilities (1:3–4, 6), the author of the book attributes much of his success to God (4:8–9, 18; 5:11, 14).
planned to appoint him Darius’ plans were temporarily thwarted by Daniel’s jealous peers.
6:4 they were not able to find any pretext Daniel maintained his integrity in every facet of life. Darius’ jealous counselors attempt to discredit Daniel, but he lives blamelessly before God.
The writer is not claiming that Daniel was sinless, but only that he was law-abiding, and that his first allegiance was to his God.
Darius, O king, live forever A common form of address in the ancient Near East, this phrase appears frequently in the book of Daniel and always precedes speeches or replies (see 3:9; 5:10).
6:7 All of Daniel is not included among the “all.”
a prayer The Aramaic word connotes prayer. Only Darius could be prayed to for 30 days.
thirty days They knew they only needed one day to catch Daniel in the act, but assigning a wider time frame made their actions less conspicuous.
the lion pit Lions were placed in a large pit, which was then sealed with a rock. Several lions and infrequent meals make this a particularly brutal—but effective—form of execution.
6:9 the king, Darius, signed the writing Enacting the 30-day prohibition as law. He apparently did this without much forethought.
He steadily continued his lifelong habit of regular prayer, as his accusers expected he would. Had he taken evasive action no doubt some other plot would have been laid against him, and by saving his own skin he would have betrayed the God whom he had served for some seventy years. Nothing would have been gained and he would have lost the opportunity to prove the faithfulness of his God.
6:11 came as a group Reveals the ulterior motives of the president and satraps.
6:12 you not sign an edict By reminding the king of his edict, Daniel’s opponents force Darius to act according to its contents.
The matter as you have just stated is certain Darius agrees that he did enact such an edict. His mentioning of “the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be revoked” foreshadows Daniel’s fate.
6:13 from the exiles of Judah Ethnic distinction was commonplace; this is to be understood as an insult (see Dan 2:25; 5:13). Their envy is partly due to his being a foreigner and an exile. No doubt his piety and righteousness also aggravated their jealousy.
is not paying any attention to you Also describes the disobedience of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in 3:12. However, Nebuchadnezzar praises their disobedience of his order in 3:28. The same sort of professional envy motivated the antagonists in ch. 3.
6:17. signet ring. Current evidence suggests that the early Persian kings used cylinder seals for empire business and stamp seals or signet rings for personal business, though the latter were growing in usage through this period. A signet ring held the official seal of the king by which he authorized the business of the empire. Only a few of these have been found by archaeologists. The seals were typically made of chalcedony and featured pictures of the king doing heroic acts (like killing beasts) under the protection of the winged sun disk (representing Ahura Mazda). Many of the Persepolis fortification tablets contained stamp seal impressions.
6:21 O king, live forever With the exception of Belshazzar in 5:18, Daniel always addresses kings in this manner.
The implication that God is and that he rewards those who trust him is the most important discovery Darius could make. While Daniel claims that he has been spared because he was blameless (22), that is, innocent of the charge against him, the narrator claims it was because he had trusted in his God (23).
6:23 he had trusted in his God When faced with the pressure of religious conformity in a foreign land, Daniel acted righteously and God delivered him (see 3:28). Jews in the Second Temple period could identify with Daniel’s plight; their faith could be strengthened by God’s miraculous intervention.
6:24. wives and children included in punishment. This is more severe than any of the legislation found in the legal collections in Mesopotamia. In the Old Testament when the family is included in the punishment, it usually reflects that the family line is being wiped out. This extends the punishment beyond life to legacy (see comment on Josh 7:25). Herodotus tells how during the reign of Darius, a high-ranking official and close associate of the king was judged to be involved in a revolt. As a result most of his family was executed.
6:25 the people, the nations, and the languages See 4:1 and note.
the whole earth Like Nebuchadnezzar, Darius also claimed a universal rule. The size and strength of his army and empire justified this claim (see 4:1 and note).
his kingdom is one that will not be destroyed In contrast to Nebuchadnezzar, Darius did not need any dramatic humbling to arrive at this conclusion.
6:28. Darius/Cyrus. For those who identify these two as the same, the translation “the reign of Darius, that is, the reign of Cyrus the Persian” is acceptable (see comment on 6:1).