Daniel and the King's Law Part I

Daniel and the King’s Law Part I

Daniel 6:16

Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said to Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.   

This Old Testament narrative is “written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.” (II Corinthians 10:11). The end of the world: as far as the Jewish Theocratic Economy is concerned, came to pass in A.D. 70: when the Romans destroyed Jerusalem, and fulfilled the word of our Lord Jesus Christ; who said: “ And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the destruction thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains: and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people.” (Luke 21: 20-23). This destruction is alluded to by the Apostle Paul, saying, Who both killed the Lord Jesus, and their own prophets, and have persecuted us; and they please not God, and are contrary to all men: Forbidding us to speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved, to fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost.” (I Thessalonians 2: 15-16).

The Old Testament scriptures are written with the same subject in view as the New Testament; and that is, Jesus Christ. Christ Jesus is the Head of the elect family of God, all the members of that body are chosen in Christ Jesus, and are members in particular of His mystical body, the church (Isaiah 42:1; I Corinthians 12:12, 27). Since all the scriptures are in some way a revelation of Jesus Christ (Psalm 40:7; Hebrews 10: 7; Luke 24:44): if we would rightly divide the word of truth, we must seek Christ, revealed, in all the scriptures. Therefore in this narrative: (a.) The Prophet Daniel represents, the election of grace, or the church and people of God, (b.) King Darius represents God, the Law Giver, and of course the law of King Darius represents the law of God. (c.) The enemies of Daniel represent Satan, the enemy of God and His people. (d.) The lions represent death, the sentence of the law.  Next, must be asked how is Christ Jesus revealed in the narrative concerning the Prophet Daniel, and the king’s broken law? We shall (if the Lord permit) consider this Old Testament type of Jesus Christ under these heads: (1.) The regard King Darius had for the Prophet Daniel. (2.) What is the typical meaning of Daniel and the broken law? (3.) Human wisdom is insufficient to deliver. (4.) God must deliver. (5.) What is the typical meaning of Daniels enemies being destroyed by their own weapons, by which they intended to destroy Daniel? It is necessary to point out that no type of the scripture is perfect in all its facets, but types are used to convey a central idea, thought, or truth: (Mark 4:2, 16) and in other cases the same types, shadows, and parables are used to hide the truth (Matthew 13:10-13; Isaiah 6:9-10; 45:15; 29:10-14).

For clarity the reader should at this point read the sixth chapter of the book of Daniel. We begin; by noticing the regard King Darius had for the Prophet Daniel, this regard is displayed by the fact that King Darius sought to set Daniel over the entire kingdom. “It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; And over these three presidents; of whom Daniel was the first: that the princes might give accounts to them, and the king should have no damage. Then Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.” (Daniel 6:1-3). The king’s high regard for Daniel is further illustrated in that the king was greatly displeased with himself for Daniels sake, when Daniel was accused by His enemies. “Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore displeased with himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him: and he labored till the going down of the sun to deliver him.” (Daniel 6:14). This high esteem of king Darius for Daniel is typical of the love of God for His church.

The love of God for His church is expressed in word to Jeremiah the prophet; the LORD spoke to Jeremiah, in the room of the whole church of God, in these words: “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.” (Jeremiah 31:3). The love of God for His elect people is according to their union with Jesus Christ, for, the Apostle Paul wrote: “Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8: 33-39). As the love of God is in Christ Jesus our Lord; and as the church has union with and in Christ from everlasting, so it is that God has loved the church in Christ, as He has loved Christ Jesus: for, it is written: “I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. (John 17:23). In fact the church has union with God in Christ; for it is written: “At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. (John 14:20). The love of God has established His purpose and grace; (II Timothy 1:9) and that purpose is in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 3:11), to deliver the objects of His love infallibly (Romans 4:16); that His many sons, certainly shall be brought to be arrayed in the glory of Jesus Christ, (Hebrews 2:10; II Thessalonians 2:14: II Peter 1: 3) to the glory of God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost (Ephesians 1:7; 2:6). The love of God is not such as gives up on its object, but endures to secure the loved ones in Christ to all eternity. The God of Holy Scripture is not such a one as loves unto death, and then if persons are not repentant, turns to hatred and casts into hell fire. This is a frustrated love, not the love of God. For, “Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection to the father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:” (Hebrews 12:6-14).                    

Secondly: What is the typical meaning of Daniel and the broken law? Daniel represents the children of God in all their generations; and their condition as they are born in this world: that is, violators of God’s law; and spiritually “dead in trespasses and sins;” (Ephesians 2:1). And not only “dead in trespasses and sins” but their carnal mind is enmity against God as well (Romans 8:7); and not only this but also “alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works” (Colossians 1:21). Daniel’s disobedience to the law of King Darius is a contrasting type of the disobedience of the church to the law of God; for, as Adam was a contrasting type of Jesus Christ: in that, as covenant head, Adam brought sin and death to all his family: in contrast, Jesus Christ as Covenant Head of the church brought righteousness and life to all the family of God (Romans 5:14-19). The contrast in the type (Daniel) and in the antitype (the church) is that Daniel offended the law of king Darius, because of His love of the law of God: while the church offended the law of God because of their hatred of the God of the Bible, and His law. Some morally correct, unregenerate, and religious person may object, by saying, I have never hated God. But Christ Jesus said “they (the Pharisees, who represent natural man: writer) hated me without a cause” (John 15:25; see verses 18-25; Psalm 69:4; 109:3).

The king’s justice had a claim against Daniel for Daniel had not obeyed the letter of the king’s law. This is the case of the children of God; the justice of God holds them accountable for infractions, first for their violation in Adam and then for their own personal sins. All the posterity of Adam sinned in Adam (Romans 5:12) and that sin was laid to their account in the judicature of God. The sin of Adam brought spiritual death to him, and his posterity in him: his creature innocence was ruined; and his nature corrupted; and being total alienated from God and the truth of God: he became totally depraved; his moral compass toward God completely ruined, such that man (by his own means) became the irreconcilable enemy of God; and in partnership with Satan in their hatred of God (John 8:39-45). The natural man is born in the prison house of Satan, and happily remains in the servitude of sin and Satan because of the darkness of his own understanding through the blindness of his heart, for it is written: “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of your mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over to lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.” (Ephesians 4:17-19). From this willing servitude human wisdom has no desire for release, nor has human wisdom the ability to release, so that, if the children of God are to be released from this captivity, God must intervene. This brings us to our third point: that, Human wisdom is insufficient to deliver. Continued in part II. See the writer’s blog at www.hebrews915.blogspot.com hear the truth of the gospel preached www.13thstbaptist,org webcasting live at listed service times.     

 AJ Ison