THE CHILDREN'S BIBLE - Old Testament, God Makes Everything

The Lion's Den

After Belshazzar was killed, Darius the Mede become king. Darius put three men in charge of his kingdom. One of these three men was Daniel.

Daniel had become a very old man. He had served God with all hus heart and mind and strength. He was a man of prayer. Danuel had seen God do mighty things. And the Lord had blessed Daniel with wisdom.

Soon Darius noticed that Daniel was better than the other two advisers. The king wanted to put Daniel in charge of the entire kingdom.

This did not make the other advisers very happy. They plotted against Daniel. They tried to find something Daniel had done wrong. They wanted to prove he was a liar or a cheat. This was hard to do since Daniel was a good man. Finally, the king's men came up with a way they could trap Daniel.

Together they went to the king. "Your Majesty, we think you should sign this order. It says you are a god. For the next thirty days, any man who pray to other gods must be thrown into the lions' den and die." The king liked the idea. So he signed the order.

Even though Daniel knew about the king's order, he continued prayibg to the Lord. All his life he had prayed at least three times a day. Kneeling by a window which faced Jerusalem, Daniel thanked God for all His blessings. He prayed for his people. He hoped the time would soon come when the Jews could go back to Jerusalem.

Daniel's enemies saw him praying from the street below. Then they went to the king. "Remember the order you gave about not worshipping any god but you? Well, Daniel has broken that law! He still prays to his God everyday."

When the king heard this, he knew he had been tricked. All day long he tried to come up with a way of saving Daniel. There was nothing he could do. The order was signed and sealed.

The guards brought Daniel to him. The king said, "There's nothing I can do. I hope your God will save you." Then Daniel was thrown into the great pit with the lions! The hole was covered with a huge stone. What would happen to him? Was this the end?

The next day, as soon as the sun rose, The king hurried to the lions' den. He stood over the stone which filled the hole. His voice shook. "Daniel, servant of the living God! Has your God been able to rescue you from the lions?" He held his breath.

There was a voice answering! "Your Majesty, yes He has!" Daniel was safe! "My God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouth. God protected me and I'm not hurt. I haven't done anything wrong, Your Majesty!"

The king called at once for the guards to open the den. When they lifted Daniel out, there was not even a scratch on him. The king sent for the men who had tricked and trapped Daniel. He told his guards to throw these men imto the lions' den. The evil advisers did not even reach the bottom of the pit before the lions finished them off.

The king ordered, "Everywhere in my kingdom people are to respect the God of Daniel. He is the living God. His kingdom will last forever. He does signs and wonders. He saved Daniel from the power of the lions!"