Den Of Lions (part 7)

When all efforts at recourse were spent, Darius was forced to relent. “So the king gave the order, and Daniel was brought and thrown into a den of lions” (Daniel 6:16a). Surely, a horrible fate. Though the Persians engaged in the practice of crucifixion, it was not of the type that was practiced by the Romans. This manner of punishment, if you will, could be considered to be the crucifixion of the day. Before being delivered over to his death, “The king consoled Daniel by saying, ‘Your God whom you continually serve will rescue you!’” (6:16b) It is so interesting that Darius, a Persian king, would say such a thing before throwing this Jewish prophet into a den of lions. Why would he say this? Was he familiar with the Psalms? Had Daniel, before that point, made reference to the twenty-second Psalm? If he had, and if this was part of the larger story of Daniel that was passed through the centuries and told even at Jesus’ day, then it makes for an even tighter analogy between Daniel and Jesus, as we consider the situation in which the one that is crying out God finds himself.

Naturally, when the Psalmist references “a roaring lion that rips its prey” (22:13a), pleads that his God will “Rescue me from the mouth of the lion” (22:21a), and speaks of “a gang of evil men” that “crowd around me,” and “like a lion they pin my hands and feet” (22:16b), the tighter connection goes beyond the simple reference to lions in this Psalm, Though this is quite the shining example of a connection between the ordeals of Daniel and Jesus, that is not the limit of the link. When Jesus cries out on the cross, “My God, my God, why have You abandoned Me?” (22:1a), He is not merely quoting a single verse, but rather, in the rabbinic tradition, and in the tradition of the teachers of Israel, He is drawing attention to an entire narrative. Jesus wants to call to mind the entire Psalm, as well as any particular stories that are linked to that Psalm, told with reference to that Psalm, and given context by that Psalm. The story of Daniel would be one of those stories inextricably linked with this Psalm. So when the people, and especially the leaders of the people that bear the responsibility for His death, hear this cry from Jesus, they will recall the whole of the Psalm. They will consider the Psalmist’s reference to lions, and the story of Daniel in the lion’s den (so popular and well known in the day) will immediately come to mind. Jesus would be here be linking His plight with that of Daniel, making His previous references to the seventh chapter of Daniel, and His reference to the Son of Man (and by extension the beast that is doing battle against the saints of the Most High, and the Ancient of Days, and the kingdom given to the Son of Man, and the four hundred ninety year period of Daniel’s prophecy) as He stood before the High Priest, even more telling.

The words of this Psalm can easily be put into the mouths of both Daniel and Jesus. Both groaned in prayer (22:1b), cried out to God (22:2a), relied upon the promises given to Israel and its ancestors, (22:4), trusted upon God’s power to perform according to those promises (22:5), were insulted and despised by their adversaries (22:6), experienced taunting and mocking (22:7), given up to the salvation of their God as a test of His power and their truthfulness (22:8), hemmed in by the powerful (22:12), devoured with words (22:13a), set in the dust of death (22:15b), and experienced the gloating of their enemies (22:17b).

Now, returning to the issue of what it was that Darius said to Daniel, let us ask again why it was that Darius said what he said. It makes a great deal of sense that Daniel, who was being threatened with the lion’s den, would have quoted this Psalm to Darius, with Darius quite easily able to make the connection, based on our review of the Psalm to this point, between the words of the Psalm and what it was that he knew Daniel was experiencing. After the Psalmist speaks of his horrific plight, and his being set in the dust of death, and amidst lions and wild dogs, indicating that death was inescapable (the Psalmist speaking of a state of exile, in strong Israelite tradition), there comes a change of tone. After the Psalmist considers himself dead, which is indicated by the fact that “They were dividing up my clothes among themselves; they are rolling dice for my garments” (22:18), as dead men need no clothes, he speaks of deliverance. We read, “But you, O Lord, do not remain far away! You are my source of strength! Hurry and help me! Deliver me from the sword! Save my life…! Rescue me…! (using Israel’s familiar exodus language) You have answered me!” (22:19-21) It is in the wake of this that the Psalmist says, “I will declare Your Name to my countrymen! In the middle of the assembly I will praise You!” (22:22) Could this be why Darius says to Daniel, “Your God whom you continually serve will rescue you,” expecting Daniel to be preserved? If Daniel has cast himself in the role of the Psalmist, experiencing this misfortune, which would not be terribly difficult considering the nature of the ordeal (den of lions), then it is not a stretch in the least little bit to presume that Daniel made this Psalm known to Darius and to all who were responsible for this attempt on his life, as did Jesus.