Daniel 6.18 [6.19]-Darius Returns to His Palace After Executing Daniel and Spends Night Fasting, Refuses Entertainment and Suffers Insomnia
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Wednesday March 20, 2013
Daniel: Daniel 6:18 (6:19)-Darius Returns to His Palace and Spends Night Fasting, Refuses Entertainment and Suffers Insomnia
Lesson # 189
Please turn in your Bibles to Daniel 6:18.
Daniel 6:1 Now, Darius the Mede received the kingdom at sixty-two years of age. 2 It was considered a good idea by Darius to establish one hundred twenty satraps over the kingdom in order that they would be in authority over the entire kingdom. 3 Also, out from, over them, three supervisors, of whom Daniel was one of them in order that these satraps would exist in the state of having to give an account to them so that the king would never be able to suffer loss. 4 Then this Daniel was distinguishing himself above the supervisors as well as satraps because an extraordinary spirit was in him. Consequently, the king intended to establish him over the entire kingdom 5 as a result, the supervisors as well as the satraps were repeatedly attempting to cause a pretext to be found against Daniel with regards to governmental affairs. However, repeatedly they were totally unable to cause any pretext in the form of corruption to be found because he was trustworthy. Indeed, no negligence in the form of corruption was found against him. 6 Therefore, these men concluded, “We will never be able to cause a pretext to be found against this Daniel unless we cause it be found in connection with the law originating from his God.” 7 Consequently, these supervisors as well as the satraps conspired together to the detriment of the king and said the following to the king, “King Darius, live forever! 8 Each and every one of the supervisors over the kingdom, namely the senior officials well as the satraps, that is the royal officials, in other words the governors are in agreement that the king should issue an edict. Specifically, an interdict, which should be enforced in order that whoever makes a request from any god or human being during a thirty day period except from you, O king, must be unceremoniously deposited into a lion’s den. 9 Now, please O king establish an interdict. Specifically, please sign the document into law in order that it can never be changed according to Medo-Persian law, which can never be revoked.” 10 Because of this, King Darius signed the document into law, that is, the interdict. 11 Now when Daniel was aware that the document was signed into law, he entered his home, which had windows in its upper room swung open toward Jerusalem. Then he worshipped on his knees three times during the day. Indeed, as was his custom, he prayed while giving thanks in the presence of his God just as he had been doing previously. 12 Then these men conspired together, namely, they found Daniel making request, specifically, making an earnest and urgent prayer request in the presence of his God. 13 Consequently they came into the king’s presence and posed a question with regards to the interdict issued by the king, “Did you not sign an interdict, namely that, any person who makes a request from any god or human being during a thirty day period except from you, O king, must be unceremoniously deposited into a lion’s den?” The king replied and said, “Absolutely, the decree is according to Medo-Persian law, which can never be revoked.” 14 Thus they replied in the presence of the king and said that, “Daniel, who is one of the deported people from Judah, has absolutely no respect for your command, O king, that is, for your interdict, which you signed into law. Instead, three times during the course of the day, he regularly makes his request.” 15 Consequently when the king heard the charge against him he was extremely upset. Thus, with regards to Daniel, he was determined to deliver him. Indeed, until sunset, he repeatedly made every effort to rescue him. 16 Then these men conspired together to the detriment of the king and said to the king, “Please remember, O king that with regards to Medo-Persian law, each and every interdict, specifically, edict, which the king does issue, is irrevocable.” 17 Therefore, the king issued an order for the purpose of causing Daniel to be brought in to be unceremoniously deposited into a lion’s den. The king encouraged Daniel and said, “Your God, because you yourself serve Him faithfully, will rescue you.” 18 Then a particular stone was brought for the purpose of being placed over the den’s mouth. Next, the king sealed it with his signet ring as well as with his nobles’ signet rings in order that this matter could never be altered. (My translation)
Daniel 6:18 Then the king went off to his palace and spent the night fasting, and no entertainment was brought before him; and his sleep fled from him. (NASB95)
“Then the king went off to his palace” tells the reader the next event that took place after the events recorded in Daniel 6:17 (6:18).
“And spent the night fasting” stands in direct contrast to what the king would normally do in that he would eat dinner and have entertainment and have a good night’s rest.
“And no entertainment was brought before him” is composed of the conjunction wa (וְ) (waw), “and” which is followed by the feminine plural noun dǎ·ḥǎwā(h) (דַּחֲוָה) (dakh-av-aw´), “entertainment” and then we have the negative particle lā(ʾ) (לָא) (law), “not” which is negating the meaning of the third person masculine singular hafʿel (Hebrew: hiphil) active perfect form of the verb ʿǎlǎl (עֲלַל) (al-al´), “entered” which is followed by the preposition qǒḏām (קֳדָם) (kod-awm´), “before” and its object is the third person masculine singular pronominal suffix hû(ʾ) (הוּא) (who), “him.”
This time the conjunction wa is used in an adjunctive sense meaning that the word is introducing a statement which presents an additional act performed by Darius following the execution of Daniel.
The noun dǎ·ḥǎwā(h) means “diversions” which would include various forms of entertainment for the king such music, or his concubines.
The verb ʿǎlǎl means “to usher, bring or lead into the presence” of someone and its meaning is emphatically negated by the negative particle lā(ʾ).
Therefore, these two words denote that “absolutely no” diversions in the form of women or music was brought into Darius’ presence following the execution of Daniel.
The hafʿel (Hebrew: hiphil) stem of the verb is causative and denotes Darius never caused these diversions to be brought into his presence in the sense that he never gave the order to have them be brought into his presence.
“And his sleep fled from him” is advancing upon and intensifying the previous two statements which records that contrary to what he normally would do during an evening, Darius fasted and never ordered any diversions to be brought into his presence.
The advancement and intensification is that the king did not eat and refused entertainment because he was physically ill but because he was mentally disturbed by the execution of Daniel.
This statement says clearly that Darius suffered from the sleep disorder of insomnia, i.e. the prolonged and usually abnormal inability to obtain adequate sleep.
Daniel 6:18 (6:19) Then the king returned to his palace. However, he spent the night fasting. Also, diversions were never ordered to be brought into his presence. Indeed, to his detriment, his sleep fled. (My translation)
After giving the order to place a large, heavy stone over the mouth of the lions’ den in which Daniel was unceremoniously deposited and sealing this stone with his signet ring and the signet rings of his nobles, Darius returned to his palace.
However, in direct contrast with what he and any king would normally do during his evenings, namely, have dinner and entertainment, Darius instead fasts and never ordered any diversions to be brought into his presence in the form of music or women.
He would eat dinner and have entertainment and have a good night’s rest.
The fact that Darius never orders any diversions in the form of women and music agrees with Xenophon’s picture of Darius who describes the king as devoted to wine and women.
However, the king’s routine is disrupted because of his great concern for Daniel.
His routine was disrupted undoubtedly because of a guilty conscience and being angry with himself for being manipulated by Daniel’s fellows supervisors and satraps.
Darius did not refuse food and entertainment because he was physically ill but because he was mentally disturbed by having to execute Daniel.
The king had a guilty conscience for executing an innocent man.
The conscience is that aspect of the soul that evaluates one’s actions and distinguishes between right from wrong.
Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary defines conscience, “A person’s inner awareness of conforming to the will of God or departing from it, resulting in either a sense of approval or condemnation.”
Warren Wiersbe writes, “Wherever you go, you find people with an inner sense of right and wrong; and this inner judge, the Bible calls ‘conscience.’ You find among all cultures a sense of sin, a fear of judgment, and an attempt to atone for sins and appease whatever gods are feared.” (The Bible Exposition Commentary, page 520).
Darius fasts in order to demonstrate his concern for Daniel and sorrow for executing him since in the ancient world it was an expression of repentance on the part of the king before the God of Israel.
The king fasted to demonstrate to the God of Israel that he was seeking forgiveness for putting to death an innocent man, Daniel.
Ironically, the one who laid down in a bed in a palace suffered insomnia whereas the one who laid down with lions had a restful sleep.
Daniel could sleep with lions all around him because his conscience was clear before God whereas Darius, though he lived in a palace suffered insomnia because of a guilty conscience.
This reveals an important principle, namely, it is better to die unjustly with a clear conscience before God than to live with a guilty conscience.
Also, it is better to suffer unjustly and die with a clear conscience before God than to live with a guilty conscience before God because of killing an innocent person.
Furthermore, Darius was a rich king living in a palace, yet he was miserable due to a guilty conscience, whereas Daniel was a Jewish captive unjustly executed yet content he was living according to the will of God which resulted in a clear conscience.
Better to be poor and unjustly treated with a clear conscience before God than to be a rich king living in a palace but with a guilty conscience before God.
This is what sin does in that it produces guilt in the soul.
In relation to the unsaved, the solution for a guilty conscience is faith alone in Christ alone in order to receive the forgiveness of sins and a cleansed conscience.
In relation to the Christian, the solution is the confession of sins (1 John 1:9) which results in the forgiveness of sins and a cleansed conscience.
In Daniel 6:16 (6:17), we read of Darius acknowledging the ability of the God of Israel to deliver Daniel from death.
He views Daniel’s God as a God of deliverance.
He recognizes that God can overrule his decision and save Daniel from death.
The king’s statement in this verse makes clear that he recognizes that Daniel’s God is sovereign over him and has the ability to shut the mouths of the lions.
The king would never have made this encouraging statement to Daniel if he did not believe that Daniel’s God was powerful enough to save him from the lions and sovereign to overrule his decision to execute Daniel.
In fact, the king would never have gone down to the pit the next morning to see if Daniel was alive if he didn’t think that God could deliver him.
He simply would never have come down and would have mourned for Daniel instead.
Faith says that God is able.
Darius’ words and action express the fact that he was of the conviction that God is able to deliver Daniel from death.
So it appears that Darius is a believer at this point in the narrative.
However, here in Daniel 6:20 (6:21), the morning after placing Daniel in the lion’s den, the king goes to the pit and cried out in a troubled voice to Daniel and asks if his God had delivered him from death.
It appears that Darius is expressing doubt in Daniel’s God’s ability to save him.
However, the king recognizes that God is sovereign as we noted earlier and could have decided not to save Daniel.
Thus, the king’s question in this verse simply reveals the king was not sure if God was willing to save Daniel.
He wasn’t doubting God’s ability to save Daniel but only doubting whether or not it was God’s will to save him.
The king was fasting in order to demonstrate his repentance to the God of Israel in the hopes that He would reverse his action in executing Daniel.
Like the king of Nineveh, Darius fasted in order to demonstrate to the God of Israel his repentance and desire that God would relent.
Darius repented because he wanted God to intervene and save Daniel.