“And the king, when he heard these words, was greatly 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
As the king listens to the 122 senior leaders in his kingdom
his demeanor changes.
And the king, when he heard these words Darius begins to
realize the snare he has fallen into. The leaders who stood in front
of him a few days earlier and told him what a great law they were
proposing now stand in front of him and condemn the one man in his
kingdom he knows he can trust. The mob’s glee and the kings anger (as he discerns the mob’s ulterior motive) stand in sharp contrast.
Was greatly displeased with himself Darius is angry with himself. He knows he has been duped and he knows he should have seen through the mob’s thinly veiled scheme. Likely their actions make him value and appreciate Daniel more. They have been false witnesses and Daniel has been faithful. (“A faithful witness does not lie, but a false witness breathes out lies.” Proverbs 14:5) Darius can look back now and see how the request to approve this law was orchestrated to appeal to his pride. He sees how he failed to think the situation through and consider the consequences. He realizes Daniel was not with the mob when they presented the law to him. He knows he should have asked Daniel for his opinion before signing it. He is likely mad at his leadership team but he is definitely irritated (displeased means doing evil to one’s self) with himself.
Set his heart on Daniel to deliver him The king has made a crisis for himself. His first order of business is to rescue Daniel from the situation he has placed him in. Likely the king would have preferred to throw a tantrum at the leadership team that got him into this mess. The king knows, however, he is on the horns of a dilemma and now is not the time to exact revenge on this group. He must rescue Daniel if he can. This is exactly what the mob prepared for. They were fearful the king would try and reverse the law to save his favored advisor. That is why they continually made the point to the king throughout the chapter that the law cannot be altered or rescinded. They think they placed the king and God in a no-way out situation. To the king it seems hopeless, not to God.
He labored till the going down of the sun to deliver him No doubt the king surrounded himself with the wisest counselors
in his cabinet. He probably had them searching history and past laws to see if there was any way out of this situation. The king’s
counselors worked all day but could find no loopholes. The best efforts of the best thinkers in the kingdom could not get the king out of the dilemma. This is the time God delights to work – when the brightest of men realize it is impossible. They may not have known it but Daniel did God is preparing to work His way. “With God, nothing is impossible”.
What can we learn? When God takes us though a trial, we often cannot escape. When God does not act before the trial begins that does not mean God will not work. He can glorify His name by showing His omnipotence as He preserves us through the trial as opposed to removing the trial. Daniel faced both types of tests in his life. So will we.
How and when God works is His prerogative. Trusting Him is ours.