Study Desk

He was driven away from mankind, and his mind was like that of a beast. He lived with the wild donkeys and ate grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven until he acknowledged that the Most High God is ruler over the kingdom of mankind, and He sets over it whom He wishes.

Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. The vessels from His house were brought to you, and as you drank wine from them with your nobles, wives, and concubines, you praised gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you have failed to glorify the God who holds in His hand your very breath and all your ways.

And this is the interpretation of the message: MENE means that God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end.

Finally these men said, "We will never find any charge against this Daniel, unless we find something against him concerning the law of his God."

All the royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers, and governors have agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce a decree that for thirty days anyone who petitions any god or man except you, O king, will be thrown into the den of lions.

Now when Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went into his house, where the windows of his upper room opened toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he got down on his knees, prayed, and gave thanks to his God, just as he had done before.

Then these men went as a group and found Daniel petitioning and imploring his God.

So they approached the king and asked about his royal decree: "Did you not sign a decree that for thirty days any man who petitions any god or man except you, O king, will be thrown into the den of lions?" The king replied, "According to the law of the Medes and Persians, the order stands and it cannot be repealed."

So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the den of lions. The king said to Daniel, "May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you!"

When he reached the den, he cried out in a voice of anguish, "O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?"

My God sent His angel and shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, for I was found innocent in His sight, and I have done no wrong against you, O king."

The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den, and when Daniel was lifted out of the den, no wounds whatsoever were found on him, because he had trusted in his God.

I hereby decree that in every part of my kingdom, men are to tremble in fear before the God of Daniel: For He is the living God, and He endures forever; His kingdom will never be destroyed, and His dominion will never end.

So I turned my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and petition, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes.

And I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed, "O, Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant of loving devotion to those who love Him and keep His commandments,

To the Lord our God belong compassion and forgiveness, even though we have rebelled against Him

and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God to walk in His laws, which He set before us through His servants the prophets.

All Israel has transgressed Your law and turned away, refusing to obey Your voice; so the oath and the curse written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, has been poured out on us because we have sinned against You.

Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come upon us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our iniquities and paying attention to Your truth.

Therefore the LORD has kept the calamity in store and brought it upon us. For the LORD our God is righteous in all He does; yet we have not obeyed His voice.