In the book of Daniel, Daniel shared how King Darius signed a decree that no one was to pray to anyone but him for thirty days, and afterward the men who convinced him to give this command saw Daniel praying and told Darius, “Daniel, which is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regards not you, O king, nor the decree that you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day. Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore displeased with himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him: and he labored till the going down of the sun to deliver him. Then these men assembled unto the king, and said unto the king, Know, O king, that the law of the Medes and Persians is, That no decree nor statute which the king establishes may be changed. Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spoke and said unto Daniel, Your God whom you serve continually, he will deliver you. And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his lords; that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel. Then the king went to his palace, and passed the night fasting: neither were instruments of music brought before him: and his sleep went from him”, and in chapter six and verse nineteen of his book Daniel shared how, “the king arose early … and went in haste unto the den of lions” where we read,
Then the king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions.
The verse reads, “Then the king arose very early in the morning, …” Daniel began with the words, “then the king” or “at that time the royal ruler and leader Darius” “arose very early” which means “stood and got up at the sunrise or dawn” “in the morning” or “within the brightness of day”. Daniel shared how King Darius got up at dawn and did the following.
The verse goes on to say, “… and went in haste unto the den of lions.” Daniel continued with the words, “and went in haste” or “and left and departed in an alarmed, terrified and hurried manner” “unto the den of lions” which means “to the cut out pit for the lions”. Daniel shared how King Darius departed in a hurried fashion to go to the cut out pit for the lions.
When we think through the words in this verse, we learn through Daniel how King Darius woke up early the day after Daniel was thrown into the “lions’ den”, and he rushed to the site where Daniel and the lions were held. We can imagine after a sleepless night in the royal mansion, King Darius anxious as the dawn of the day came. When he was on his way to the site, he must have been wondering if Daniel’s God saved him, and we shall see in our future verses what happened to him. God was watching over Daniel, and He watches over us as well. He desires a personal relationship with us like Daniel through His Son Jesus who died on the cross for our sins and was raised from the dead after three days. When we yield to Him, He will forgive our sins, grant us everlasting life and put His Holy Spirit within us who shall give us assurance that He is always with us regardless of the circumstances we find ourselves in.
Next time Daniel shares how King Darius, “cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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