“Taking this lesson to heart”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Saturday, April 29, 2023
Daniel 6:16-28 (Forward, p. 90) CEV p. 600
It is interesting to realize how much today’s story has entered into our everyday conversations, into the mainstream of our everyday language. Thus, we freely speak of being ‘thrown into the lion’s den’. Thus, the Britannica Dictionary defined ‘lion’s den’ as being a place or situation in which someone must deal with an angry person or group of people’, which certainly describes Daniel’s dealings with a bunch of jealous, disgruntled fellow workers.
Then there is a similar phrase, ‘walking into the lion’s den’ which is described as ‘deliberately placing yourself in a dangerous or difficult situation’, and certainly that too describes Daniel’s situation, for he deliberately continued to pray to God, even though he knew it was against the law and therefore punishable by death.
Our narrative also introduces us to yet another English expression, ‘‘the law of the Medes and Persians’, which is defined as ‘a rule, law or custom which is unchangeable.’ And yes, that is certainly what Daniel was up against. The king of Persia, Darius, had framed the law at the behest of some of Daniel’s rivals, quite innocently, never dreaming that it would be used against his most trusted employee, Daniel. So, the poor king was ‘caught between a rock and a hard place’. He would have liked to make an exemption for Daniel, but the law was there, firm and irrevocable. He could not go back on the law that he had just propagated. So, all that the king could rely on was the intervention of Almighty God.
And here is where we come to a lesson that we might be quite ready to forget—or at very least, not to take to heart or apply it to our own lives. Both Daniel and Darius were willing to trust God no matter what. So, what about us? Are we willing to do the same? And, to do immediately and publicly? I’m afraid that I can’t always say that I do. Far too often, I dilly daddle about it, and take my ‘own sweet time’, which means sometimes that the optimum time, the ‘best time’, comes and goes, and so the opportunity is wasted. So, I think that Daniel’s example, his lesson, is certainly one to be listened to—and followed. Amen.
Forward notes: “Daniel was taken up out of the den” (verse 23).
“I’ve read more than one story about overzealous people climbing enclosures at zoos to get closer to lions and other animals, and those encounters do not always end with the person escaping unscathed.
“There are so many tragedies and seemingly senseless deaths that it can be hard to read this passage about how an angel shut the lions’ mouths so they would not devour Daniel without some skepticism. The pandemic alone has taken untold lives. Not everyone escapes the lions’ dens. So why do we read or retell these stories over and over?
“I think it is so that we will have heroes to look to, miraculous stories to hold onto for hope, even when our own lives seem hopeless. Yes, God can work miracles, but we also know not everyone is delivered from danger.
“My son loved this story when he was little. I loved it, too. I still love it, for different reasons. Rather than the frisson of terror I felt as a child, I feel thankful for this example of God’s working signs and wonders in heaven and on earth.”
Moving Forward: “Which Bible stories give you hope, especially when you’re feeling hopeless?”