How old was Daniel when he was placed in the lion’s den? Was he a young man, middle aged man or an old man? What insight does that give us into the story?

Since Darius is the king who puts Daniel in the lion’s den and Darius is one of the last kings that Daniel served in Babylon/Persia (538-536 BC), Daniel is probably around 80 years old. Picture Daniel as a senior statesman among the Jews who was well respected by Jew and Gentile (Dan. 6:14). He was also well known for his faith (Dan. 6:5). Daniel’s willingness to die rather than to cease praying, even for a short time, was an example of the Jew and Gentile alike. It brought praise to God from the Gentile king and was an encouragement for the Jews to cling to their God. His story reminds us that our actions are being watched by others and will lead people closer to the Lord or cause disrespect for the Lord.

Writer’s Bench: The devotions that appear in this blog fit in a genre called “Creative Non-Fiction”. Unlike fiction books, the devotions cannot invent characters or story lines in the way that a fiction writer does. Yet, I don’t want these devotions to be dry recitations of the bible facts. I want us to picture what it must have been like for characters like Daniel, Abraham or Peter. In the story above. I picture an old Daniel looking back at his life and seeing all the blessings that the Lord has brought to him. He was a captive taken by the Babylonians who has risen in the government so that Darius wants to make Daniel second in command (Daniel 6:3). Such a man would not put his trust in kings of the earth and would rather die than give up his relationship with the Lord. None of that is in scripture, but it brings life to the story.

This and That: On the author page is a picture of my family. Over Memorial Day weekend, we will have the joy of camping together. The group will include my children, my parents, and my brother’s families. I consider myself blessed beyond belief by my God. He has given me a loving family and the weekend will be a great joy for all of us. I pray that you have a wonderful weekend as well. Also, the final version of the Abraham book is now at the publisher’s and is in the final edit. The book should be out on Amazon as a print book and on Kindle next month.