Daniel 6:4 Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom… There are four things relating to the proposed statute which are worthy of being noted. I. One is the influential character of the deputation. It consisted of presidents and satraps, two presidents and perhaps a considerable number of the satraps. It is not likely that all the one hundred and twenty satraps were present in Babylon at one and the same time. The deputation therefore consisted of the highest and most influential officers of state. 2. Another is the turbulence of their zeal. They are said to have "assembled together," or rather, as in the margin, "came tumultuously." They approached the king in his palace, not with calm deliberation, but in stormy haste. And the excited eagerness of such influential men, especially as the kingdom had been only recently subjugated and received, could not fail to impress the king. 3. Another is that the proposed statute was recommended by the whole body of his rulers. This was certainly false, as Daniel, the wisest ruler of them all, had never been consulted; and possibly there were others, especially in the remote provinces. It seems, however, likely that all the rulers who were consulted were of one mind as to the desirableness of getting such a statute, and of thereby effecting the favoured Jewish statesman. Such a representation on the part of this influential and resolute body of men would naturally have much weight with the king. 4. And another is the high honour which the statute would confer on Darius. He was to be regarded not only as a god, but as the god for the period of a month. This certainly was a most extraordinary proposal; but it would not seem so extraordinary to Darius as it does to us. His grandfather, Deioces, the king of the Medes, sought to inspire hie people with the idea that he was more than a man; and it was the belief of the Persians that their kings were an incarnation of the Deity. Their proposal was thus in the line both of the popular belief and of the king's natural desire for self-exaltation. (Thomas Kirk). Parallel Verses KJV: Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. |
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