Daniel-What I Did in the Lion's Den

By Mary Vee
Daniel 6

From Daniel's Journal

Photo Courtesy

My name is Daniel, I am a prophet of God and am living in captivity in Babylon.

Yes, I am alive.

All because God spared my life.

This morning the rock rolled away from the opening of the den where I was held prisoner all night. 

The den wasn't empty. Several lions kept me company along with an amazing angel. 

The angel kept the lions away from me. I didn't sleep. No. I took advantage of the opportunity to speak with the angel. We sang praises to God..it was amazing. 

All night long we sang together, praising God. The lions sat there, they might have been humming along.

When the stone rolled away, sunlight and fresh air poured into the hole where I'd been. I looked behind me and didn't see the angel, yet the lions still stayed away from me.

The king called down to me. "Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve faithfully, been able to rescue you from the lions?"

Did you hear that? The king saw my faithfulness to God. 

I walked to the opening, but stayed down in the den. I called up to answer him, "O King live forever!" I laughed so delighted to tell him what had happened. "My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight." Then I became serious. "Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, O king."

King Darius leaped and laughed. He clapped his hands and ordered the guards to lift me out of the den. They brought me to him. He looked me over and slapped my arms. "You have no wounds. Anywhere. This is amazing."

Then he furrowed his brow. He turned away from me and faced his satraps and administrators. He yelled, "Take every man who falsely accused Daniel and throw them, their wives, and their children into the den.

The guards did as they were told. Before my accusers reached the floor of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones. What a horrible sight.

That afternoon, King Darius wrote to all the peoples, nations, and men of every language throughout the land:

"May you prosper greatly!

I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. 

For he is the living God and he endures forever. His kingdom will not be destroyed. His dominion will never end. He rescues and he saves. He performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions."

As for the rest of my story, I continued to serve King Darius while he was in power. When Cyrus the Persian took power and conquered Babylon, I found favor in his sight and served there until the first year of his reign.  

I was pretty old. The end of my story is not important. What matters is I found that serving God everyday even while in captivity brought joy and peace to my heart.

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1. What did Daniel do all night in the den.
2. What did King Darius do as soon as the sun rose?
3. After seeing Daniel was not harmed, what did the king do to the ones who accused Daniel?
4. What did King Darius decree to the people?
5. Who ruled over the land after Darius?
6. What was most important to Daniel?