Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Daniel
Chapter 6: He Hath Shut the Lions' Mouths
Daniel is now an old man, so faithful in office that his rivals cannot find a single fault to accuse him of, 'except we find it against him concerning the law of his God.' So they trick the king into a decree that no one may pray to any god but the king for thirty days, on pain of the lions' den. Daniel's response is quiet and unwavering: he goes home, opens his windows toward Jerusalem, and kneels to pray 'three times a day... as he did aforetime.' Thrown to the lions and sealed under a stone, he is found alive at dawn, 'My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths.' The pagan king who could not save him ends by decreeing that all his empire tremble before 'the living God, and stedfast for ever.' It is a picture of faith that will not stop praying, and of the God who delivers His own.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Daniel chapter 6, Daniel in the lions' den. For each section you will find the KJV text, key word studies, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. This is the last of Daniel's Aramaic chapters. Watch how Daniel, innocent and sealed under a stone, delivered alive at dawn, foreshadows the Lord Jesus. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
No Fault Found
A life so faithful the only charge is his devotion to God.
As He Did Aforetime
Daniel kneels three times a day, unchanged by the decree.
Sealed With a Stone
Cast to the lions and sealed in, he is found alive at dawn.
The Living God
The king decrees all his empire fear the God who delivers.
He Prayed As He Did Aforetime (Daniel 6:1-15)
Daniel's excellence stirs the envy of the other officials, who, unable to find any fault, trap him with a decree against prayer; and Daniel, knowing the decree is signed, keeps praying three times a day exactly as he always had.
Except Concerning the Law of His God
"It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage. Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm. Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God. Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever. All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counsellors, and the captains, have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not. Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree. Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God. Then they came near, and spake before the king concerning the king's decree; Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that shall ask a petition of any God or man within thirty days, save of thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not. Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, which is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh 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 laboured 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 establisheth may be changed."
Word Study
"they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful." The highest tribute in the chapter comes from Daniel's enemies. They ransacked his public life for corruption and found nothing, "neither was there any error or fault found in him." His integrity was airtight. The only accusation they could bring was that he served God, "except we find it against him concerning the law of his God." To live so that the world can only fault you for loving God is the mark of a truly godly life, so that those who "speak evil of you, as of evildoers" are left "ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ" (1 Peter 3:16).
"he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed... as he did aforetime." The key phrase is "as he did aforetime." Daniel did not suddenly pray more to make a show, nor did he stop to save his skin; he simply kept doing what he had always done. His courage was the courage of consistency. The open windows "toward Jerusalem" honored God's promise about the temple (1 Kings 8:48-49), and his refusal to stop was simple obedience, "We ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). Habitual, faithful prayer is what carried him into the den unafraid.
Explanation
Under Darius, Daniel rises to the top of the government "because an excellent spirit was in him," and the king plans to promote him over the whole realm. His jealous colleagues look for dirt but find none, "he was faithful." So they devise a trap aimed at the one thing they know he will never compromise, his devotion to God. They flatter the king into signing an irreversible decree that for thirty days no one may petition any god or man but the king, on pain of "the den of lions."
Daniel's response is the heart of the chapter. "When Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house," opened his windows "toward Jerusalem," and "kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime." He does not defy the decree loudly or hide from it timidly; he simply keeps worshipping his God as always. The conspirators catch him "praying and making supplication," and spring the trap. The king, who loves Daniel, "laboured till the going down of the sun to deliver him," but the unchangeable law of the Medes and Persians has him cornered. Human power cannot undo the trap; only God can.
Gospel Focus
Daniel's life is a rebuke and an encouragement to every believer. His enemies could find "none occasion nor fault"; his walk was clean enough that the only charge they could invent was that he prayed. Is our life so consistent that the world could only fault us for loving God? And when the cost of faithfulness rose to a death sentence, Daniel's response was not heroics but habit: he prayed "as he did aforetime." Courage in the crisis is built by faithfulness in the ordinary. The believer who has knelt in secret every day will not panic when the decree is signed. This is also the promise Scripture makes plain: "all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution" (2 Timothy 3:12). Faithful prayer will sometimes cost you; the world hates true devotion. But better the lions' den with a clear conscience than the king's favor with a bent knee to the wrong throne. Keep praying as you did aforetime, and let God handle the den.
My God Hath Sent His Angel (Daniel 6:16-28)
Daniel is cast to the lions and sealed under a stone, but at dawn he is found alive, delivered by God's angel, so the king who condemned him decrees that all the earth fear the living God who rescues His servants.
He Is the Living God, and Stedfast For Ever
"Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee. 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 musick brought before him: and his sleep went from him. Then the king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions. And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel: and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live for ever. My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt. Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God. And the king 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; and the lions had the mastery of them, and brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den. Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you. I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed, and his dominion shall be even unto the end. He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian."
Word Study
"My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths." As in the fiery furnace, God sends "his angel", the same divine deliverer, to guard His servant, exactly as the psalm promises, "he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways" (Psalm 91:11). The lions that could crush bones "in pieces" (verse 24) were made harmless as kittens by the God who "stopped the mouths of lions" (Hebrews 11:33). No power on earth, and no roaring adversary, can harm the servant God has decided to keep.
"he is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed." Like Nebuchadnezzar before him, the pagan Darius ends by confessing the one true God, "the living God," in contrast to the dead idols, and the everlasting kingdom that echoes through the whole book (Daniel 2:44; 4:34). The God of Daniel is not one god among many; He is "the living God," whose "kingdom... shall not be destroyed" and whose "dominion shall be even unto the end." The den of lions became a pulpit proclaiming the one God to the whole empire.
Explanation
Daniel is cast into the den, and even the king voices a hope: "Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee." A stone is laid over the mouth and "sealed... with his own signet," and the king passes a sleepless night "fasting." At dawn he rushes to the den and cries out, "O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?" And Daniel answers alive: "My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that they have not hurt me."
Daniel is lifted out with "no manner of hurt found upon him, because he believed in his God." The accusers who dug the pit fall into it, seized by the same lions. Then Darius writes to "all people, nations, and languages" a decree that all his empire fear "the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever," who "delivereth and rescueth" and "worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth." Daniel, faithful into old age, "prospered." The plot meant to destroy him became the occasion for the one living God to be honored across the world.
Gospel Focus
Daniel in the den is a striking picture of the Lord Jesus. An innocent man, against whom "innocency was found," is condemned through the envy of jealous rulers; he is sealed in a pit under a stone with an official signet, just as Christ's tomb was made "sure, sealing the stone" (Matthew 27:66); and when men come "very early in the morning" they find him alive, delivered by the power of God. Daniel came out of the den; Christ came out of the grave, having truly conquered death for us. And the same God who "shut the lions' mouths" is the one who guards His people still, for our "adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8), yet cannot touch those God keeps, "the Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations" (2 Peter 2:9). Like the furnace, the den reminds us that God's deliverance is His to give as He wills, sometimes He keeps us out of the lions' mouths, sometimes through martyrdom into His presence, but the faithful are never abandoned. Pray as you did aforetime, trust the living God, and He who shut the lions' mouths for Daniel and raised Jesus from the dead will keep you to the end.
Chapter 6 in Review
Daniel 6 is the account of the lions' den. Daniel rises to the top of Persia by his "excellent spirit," and his jealous rivals, unable to find any "fault" in him, trap him with a decree against prayer, "except we find it against him concerning the law of his God." Daniel keeps praying "three times a day... as he did aforetime," is caught, and is thrown to the lions and sealed under a stone. At dawn he is found alive, "My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths." The accusers perish in their own trap, and Darius decrees that all his empire fear "the living God, and stedfast for ever."
For the Apostolic reader the chapter is rich with encouragement. It calls us to a life so consistent that the world can fault us only for loving God, and to a prayer life so habitual that a death decree cannot shake it, courage built from ordinary faithfulness. It shows that the godly will be opposed, "all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution," but that God guards His own and turns the plots of the wicked back on their own heads. And it lifts our eyes to Christ, the innocent One sealed under a stone and raised at dawn, who conquered not merely lions but death itself. Serve the living God continually, pray as you did aforetime, and trust the One who shuts the lions' mouths and empties the grave.
- Live so the world can find no fault except your devotion to God (6:4-5; 1 Peter 3:16).
- Courage in crisis is built from ordinary faithfulness: Daniel prayed "as he did aforetime" (6:10; Acts 5:29).
- The godly will be opposed for their faith (6:5; 2 Timothy 3:12; Matthew 5:10).
- God sends His angel and shuts the lions' mouths; no adversary harms whom He keeps (6:22; Psalm 91:11; Hebrews 11:33).
- Daniel, innocent, sealed under a stone, delivered at dawn, foreshadows the risen Christ (6:17, 19; Matthew 27:66).
- Even a pagan king confesses "the living God, and stedfast for ever," whose kingdom shall not be destroyed (6:26; Daniel 2:44).
Questions for Reflection
- If enemies searched your life, could they find any fault but your love for God?
- Daniel's crisis courage came from daily habit. Is your prayer life steady enough to hold when tested?
- God shut the lions' mouths. Where do you need to trust Him with a "den" you cannot escape?
- How does Daniel, sealed under a stone and raised at dawn, deepen your hope in the risen Christ?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Daniel 6 is in Aramaic. Praying toward Jerusalem: 1 Kings 8:44-49; Psalm 5:7; obedience to God above men: Acts 5:29; Exodus 1:17. A blameless witness: 1 Peter 3:16; Titus 2:7-8; Philippians 2:15. Persecution of the godly: 2 Timothy 3:12; Matthew 5:10-12; John 15:19-20. God's angel and the shut lions' mouths: Psalm 34:7; 91:11; Hebrews 11:33; 2 Timothy 4:17; the roaring-lion adversary: 1 Peter 5:8; deliverance of the godly: 2 Peter 2:9. The plotters caught in their own trap: Psalm 7:15-16; 9:15; Proverbs 26:27. Daniel as a type of Christ, condemned by envy (Matthew 27:18), sealed under a stone (Matthew 27:66), found alive at dawn (Mark 16:2). The living God and His everlasting kingdom confessed by Darius: Daniel 2:44; 4:34-35; compare 1 Timothy 6:16; Psalm 42:2. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- The blameless man, the jealous plot, and steadfast prayer: Daniel 6:1-15; 1 Peter 3:16; Acts 5:29; 2 Timothy 3:12.
- The lions' den, the deliverance, and the king's confession of the living God: Daniel 6:16-28; Psalm 91:11; Hebrews 11:33; Matthew 27:66; Daniel 2:44.