28/08/11

Living in a lion's den

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 unto Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.

This miracle of Daniel along with other miracles, like parting of the Red Sea, Jonah in the fish's belly, Jesus feeding the thousands, Lazarus coming back to life etc. has captured the minds of most people including non-believers. One sees many paintings made of this event showing a large cave with 5 to max 10 lions surrounding Daniel.

Most think the lions were pets kept by the king like the exotic wild cats they walked with chains before the king. If one understands why the lions were kept then one would understand the quantity of lions that were there in the den.

These lions were not pets but tactical weapons used by the Babylonians for battles before Alexandra and the Roman era. The Babylonian army would have hundreds of these hungry lions not fed for many days together, leading the whole army. Just before the battle these lions would be left and would cause havoc to the horse of the horsemen of the charging enemy, destroying the destruction power of the opponent's first charge and giving the Babylonians an upper hand in the battle.

The den in which Daniel was put in was not a natural cave but a manmade structure housing a very large number of lions. These lions were kept always hungry, fed bare minimum. Historians have found the numbers to be in hundreds. When Daniel was put in this den not one lion harmed him even thought all had the potential to kill him in minutes.

The Lord is giving us and Church a message today. We complain about persecution and people who are enemies of people of God, who go to any extent to harm and destroy the people who believe in the Truth. If God can shut the mouths of the hundreds of lions and control their aggression, can He not do the same to these people? Also the disasters that come against believers, do we not know that God is in control of everything including nature.

The reason we do not see this happen is because we do not live a life like Daniel. Daniel was among a few in the Old Testament, whom the Lord considered as righteous people. Even great people like Abraham, Moses and David were not among these names.

We may not be a great Man or Woman of God ministering to thousands, famous the world over, but yet we can be one among the righteous of God like Daniel for whom the Lord did great wonders and manifest His glory.


[ Prayer Starter ]
Lord, You are Almighty God. The world has witnessed when your people walked according to your instructions not one soul was harmed in fact your people multiplied and prospered. Lord, we pray that your people realize when they are with You, no one can even harm a hair of their head. Open their eyes and help them live a righteous life like Daniel, Job and Noah...

This prayer we make in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference Scriptures ]
Ezekiel 14:12-20
12 The word of the LORD came again to me, saying,
13 Son of man, when the land sinneth against me by trespassing grievously, then will I stretch out mine hand upon it, and will break the staff of the bread thereof, and will send famine upon it, and will cut off man and beast from it:
14 Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD.
15 If I cause noisome beasts to pass through the land, and they spoil it, so that it be desolate, that no man may pass through because of the beasts:
16 Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate.
17 Or if I bring a sword upon that land, and say, Sword, go through the land; so that I cut off man and beast from it:
18 Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only shall be delivered themselves.
19 Or if I send a pestilence into that land, and pour out my fury upon it in blood, to cut off from it man and beast:
20 Though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.

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