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Daniel 6:13

in Daniel 6

Then they told the king, “Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, shows no regard for you, O king, or for the decree that you have signed. He still makes his petition three times a day.”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the interdict that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day.

KJV

Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, which is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day.

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This verse in Daniel 6

Commentary

8 notes on this verse

A commentator

Jerome

St. Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, CHAPTER SIX · Written before 420.

Verse 13. "Then they answered before the king and said, 'Daniel, who is of the captivity of Judah, has paid no heed to thy law...'" In order to magnify the dishonor involved in this contempt, they speak of the man who showed this contempt for the king's commands as a mere captive.

This site's exposition

Hast thou not signed a decree

on Daniel 6:12-13

The conspirators force Darius to restate his own decree before naming the offender, trapping him with his own words, the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not, before revealing that Daniel is the man who regardeth not thee, O king. Clarke notes the phrase children of the captivity of Judah is used with the same edge Belshazzar used of Daniel in the previous chapter, a reminder meant to diminish him as a foreign exile rather than the kingdom's own trusted president. The accusation is technically accurate and morally false, which is exactly the kind of charge integrity cannot answer by denial, only by the God it trusts.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers3 voices

A commentator

Hippolytus of Rome

Commentary on Daniel 3.25.3-4 · Written before 235.

proposed

They said to him, "'Behold, Daniel, who is from the sons of the captivity of Judah, does not obey your decree and three times a day he asks from his God his petitions.' Then, the king when he heard the matter, was greatly grieved over it and he fought concerning Daniel in order to release him." [Daniel 6:13-14] For having known their machinations and that they hated Daniel because he was at that time wiser and more reputable than all of them and that they devised this plot against him, wanting to hand him over to beasts through a trap. Therefore the king questioned the satraps and asked whether he could be able to preserve him from danger.

A commentator

Origen of Alexandria

ON PRAYER 12:2 · Written before 253.

proposed

And he prays "constantly" (deeds of virtue or fulfilling the commandments are included as part of prayer) who unites prayer with the deeds required and right deeds with prayer. For the only way we can accept the command to "pray constantly" as referring to a real possibility is by saying that the entire life of the saint taken as a whole is a single great prayer. What is customarily called prayer is, then, a part of this prayer. Now prayer in the ordinary sense ought to be made no less than three times each day. This is evident in the story of Daniel, who prayed three times each day when such great peril had been devised for him.

A commentator

Hippolytus of Rome

Commentary on Daniel 3.26.1-3 · Written before 235.

proposed

And so why did the satraps accuse only Daniel? For always the three boys were also with him praying. For if they did not obey the prescription of Nebuchadnezzar, much more would they not obey the decree of Darius. But this is the reason. For since then in the times of Nebuchadnezzar while Daniel was present, the Chaldeans accused no other except the three boys alone, their testimony was not forgotten. In this way now in the times of Darius they accused only Daniel. For the call to martyrdom was his. For a man does not forsake God on account of time, so that in time he may be glorified. As the prophet says, "He who made his worlds, he shall call each one of them by name." [Isaiah 40:26]

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

That excellent spirit which Daniel was endued with, and that established reputation which he had gained, could not protect him from these poisonous darts. They do not say, He makes his petition to his God, lest Darius should take notice of that to his praise, but only, He makes his petition, which is the thing the law forbids. The great concern the king was in hereupon.
Then answered they, and spake before the king,....
1 more voice on this verse

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

Then answered they ... That Daniel which is of the children of the captivity of Judah - Who is one of the captive Jews. There was art in thus referring to Daniel, instead of mentioning him as sustaining an exalted office. It would serve to aggravate his guilt to remind the king that one who was in fact a foreigner, and a captive, had thus disregarded his solemn commandment.

How the passage was read

What the Jewish commentators add

concerning the king’s decree concerning the infraction of the king’s decree, about which they had come to inform.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Daniel 6:13:1, via Sefaria, The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
did not pay heed to you, O king He did not pay heed or counsel to care about your decrees.
Rashi: France, 1040–1105 · Rashi on Daniel 6:14:1, via Sefaria, The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg

This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.

Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 2 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.

The words behind it

27 Hebrew words

Every Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

  • בֵּ֠אדַיִן<in> then

    bedayinH116 →57 times

  • עֲנ֣וֹthey replied

    anoH6032 →30 times

  • וְאָמְרִין֮and [were] saying

    veamerinH560 →71 times

  • קֳדָ֣םbefore

    kodamH6925 →42 times

  • מַלְכָּא֒king the

    malka'H4430 →180 times

  • דִּ֣יthat

    diH1768 →345 times

  • דָנִיֵּ֡אלDaniel

    daniyelH1841 →57 times

  • דִּי֩who

    diH1768 →345 times

  • מִן־[is] one of

    min-H4481 →109 times

  • בְּנֵ֨י[the] sons of

    beneiH1247 →19 times

  • גָלוּתָ֜אexile the

    galuta'H1547 →4 times

  • דִּ֣יof

    diH1768 →345 times

  • יְה֗וּדJudah

    yehudH3061 →7 times

  • לָא־not

    la'-H3809 →82 times

  • שָׂ֨םhe has set

    samH7761 →26 times

  • עֲלָ֤ךְto you

    alayikhH5922 →104 times

  • מַלְכָּא֙king O

    malka'H4430 →180 times

  • טְעֵ֔םdiscretion

    teemH2942 →28 times

  • וְעַל־and to

    veal-H5922 →104 times

  • אֱסָרָ֖אprohibition the

    ʾesara'H633 →7 times

  • דִּ֣יwhich

    diH1768 →345 times

  • רְשַׁ֑מְתָּyou signed

    reshamtaH7560 →7 times

  • וְזִמְנִ֤יןand times

    vezimninH2166 →11 times

  • תְּלָתָה֙three

    telatahH8532 →11 times

  • בְּיוֹמָ֔אin day the

    beyoma'H3118 →16 times

  • בָּעֵ֖א[he is] asking

    bae'H1156 →12 times

  • בָּעוּתֵֽהּ׃petition his

    bautehH1159 →

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

14 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Psalms 55:17Morning, noon, and night, I cry out in distress, and He hears my voice.8 worksDaniel 3:12But there are some Jews you have appointed to manage the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—who have ignored you, O king, and have refused to serve your gods or worship the golden statue you have set up.”7 worksDaniel 5:13So Daniel was brought before the king, who asked him, “Are you Daniel, one of the exiles my father the king brought from Judah?6 worksDaniel 6:10Now when Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went into his house, where the windows of his upper room opened toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he got down on his knees, prayed, and gave thanks to his God, just as he had done before.5 worksExodus 1:17The midwives, however, feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt had instructed; they let the boys live.5 worksActs 5:29But Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.4 works
The other 8 cross-references, with their words ▾
Daniel 2:25Arioch hastily brought Daniel before the king and said to him, “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who will tell the king the interpretation.”4 worksProverbs 30:10Do not slander a servant to his master, or he will curse you, and you will bear the guilt.4 worksEsther 3:8Then Haman informed King Xerxes, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples of every province of your kingdom. Their laws are different from everyone else’s, and they do not obey the king’s laws. So it is not in the king’s best interest to tolerate them.3 worksEsther 3:4Day after day they warned him, but he would not comply. So they reported it to Haman to see whether Mordecai’s behavior would be tolerated, since he had told them he was a Jew.3 worksDaniel 1:6Among these young men were some from Judah: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.2 worksEzekiel 3:11Go to your people, the exiles; speak to them and tell them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says,’ whether they listen or refuse to listen.”2 worksActs 17:7and Jason has welcomed them into his home. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, named Jesus!”1 worksActs 7:37This is the same Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers.’1 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Acts 5:29

    But Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather than men.

    it leads to

    • Acts 4:19

      But Peter and John replied, “Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God’s sight to listen to you rather than God.

    • 1 Samuel 15:24

      Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned; I have transgressed the LORD’s commandment and your instructions, because I feared the people and obeyed their voice.

    • Mark 7:7–9

      They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’

    • Genesis 3:17

      And to Adam He said: “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat, cursed is the ground because…

    • Revelation 14:8–12

      Then a second angel followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, who has made all the nations drink the wine of the passion of her immorality.”

  • Through

    Esther 3:8

    Then Haman informed King Xerxes, “There is a certain people scattered and dispersed among the peoples of every province of your kingdom. Their laws are different from everyone else’s, and they do not obey…

    it leads to

    • Ezra 4:12–15

      Let it be known to the king that the Jews who came from you to us have returned to Jerusalem. And they are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city, restoring its walls, and repairing…

    • Acts 16:20–21

      They brought them to the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews and are throwing our city into turmoil

  • Through

    Daniel 3:12

    But there are some Jews you have appointed to manage the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—who have ignored you, O king, and have refused to serve your gods or worship the golden statue…

    it leads to

    • Daniel 2:49

      And at Daniel’s request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to manage the province of Babylon, while Daniel remained in the king’s court.

Where this verse is studied

About Daniel

Daniel in the Lions' Den — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Daniel in the Lions' Den — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Daniel: the study guide →Read Daniel 6 →
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Daniel; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 3.25.3-4; Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel 3.26.1-3; Jerome, St. Jerome, Commentary on Daniel, CHAPTER SIX; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Origen of Alexandria, ON PRAYER 12:2.

Read on in Daniel 6 →