Safe in the Den

How important it is to place your trust in God!  Many people rely upon things that are not God and have no power to save.  Even we Christians can be deceived or deluded into trusting in an arm of flesh when only Christ can deliver us.  Daniel was a man who trusted in God.  Because God was with him, he had been highly promoted in both the Babylonian and Medea-Persian empires.  There were high-ranking men in the Medea-Persian empire who were envious of Daniel and sought to kill him.  Through treachery, they passed a law that prohibited anyone from praying to anyone but King Darius.  Daniel, being a devout and faithful man, was unmoved by the law.  He continued to openly pray as he always did three times daily.  Thus he was found guilty of breaking the law, and King Darius reluctantly sentenced him to be thrown to the lions.  He said to Daniel when they parted in Daniel 6:16, "Your God, whom you serve continually, He will deliver you."

During the night, Daniel was protected by an angel who shut the mouths of the hungry lions.  When morning came, Darius hurried to the den and called out in Daniel 6:20:  "Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?"  Daniel answered in the affirmative, for nothing is too hard for the One True God.  He was safely pulled from the den and the king greatly rejoiced.  Verse 23 says no manner of hurt was found on him because "he believed in his God."  For those men who had conspired to kill Daniel, the end of their story came swiftly without mercy.  Daniel 6:24 reads, "And the king gave the command, and they brought those men who had accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions--them, their children, and their wives; and the lions overpowered them, and broke all their bones in pieces before they ever came to the bottom of the den."

We see in this passage a picture of Christ and the severe retribution which will come upon all those who oppose Him.  Jesus was wrongly condemned to death, yet He trusted fully in God the Father to deliver Him.  Though He tasted the bitter cup of death and wrath of God when crucified and was buried in a tomb, God raised Him triumphant and victorious three days later.  Though Jesus bore scars, no manner of hurt was found in His glorified body - because no sin was found in Him.  Satan and all those who reject Christ, will face eternal damnation in hell which makes the quick end made by lions seem a delightful cakewalk.  The accuser and enemy of our souls, who even now is like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, Satan, that old serpent, will be utterly overcome and broken to pieces.  His head has already been crushed under the foot of Christ and he rages on, knowing his time is short.

Blessed are those who trust in the Almighty God, the great I AM, YHWH, the Creator and Saviour of all who repent and trust in Christ.  Like Daniel, we ought to trust and serve Him continually.  When we walk in faith, the accusations and even violence of the enemies of God will not sever us from fellowship with Him.  In Jesus Christ we find eternal life and pleasures evermore.  David wrote a fitting conclusion in  Psalm 56:1-4: "Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; fighting all day he oppresses me. ² My enemies would hound me all day, for there are many who fight against me, O Most High. ³ Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You. ⁴ In God (I will praise His word), in God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?"