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Daniel 6

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1 It seemed good to Darius, and he appointed over the kingdom a hundred and twenty governors to be over his whole kingdom.

2 And three princes over them, of whom Daniel was one: that the governors might give an account to them, and the king might have no trouble.

3 And Daniel excelled all the princes, and governors: because a greater spirit of God was in him.

4 And the king thought to set him over all the kingdom: whereupon the princes, and the governors sought to find occasion against Daniel with regard to the king: and they could find no cause, nor suspicion, because he was faithful, and no fault, nor suspicion was found in him

5 Then these men said: We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, unless perhaps concerning the law of his God.

6 Then the princes, and the governors craftily suggested to the king, and spoke thus unto him: King Darius, live for ever:

7 All the princes of the kingdom, the magistrates, and governors, the senators, and judges have consulted together, that an imperial decree, and an edict be published: That whosoever shall ask any petition of any god, or man, for thirty days, but of thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions.

8 Now, therefore, O king, confirm the sentence, and sign the decree: that what is decreed by the Medes and Persians may not be altered, nor any man be allowed to transgress it.

9 So king Darius set forth the decree, and established it.

10 Now when Daniel knew this, that is to say, that the law was made, he went into his house: and opening the windows in his upper chamber towards Jerusalem, he knelt down three times a day, and adored, and gave thanks before his God, as he had been accustomed to do before.

11 Wherefore those men carefully watching him, found Daniel praying and making supplication to his God.

12 And they came and spoke to the king concerning the edict: O king, hast thou not decreed, that every man that should make a request to any of the gods, or men, for thirty days, but to thyself, O king, should be cast into the den of the lions? And the king answered them, saying: The word is true according to the decree of the Medes and Persians, which it is not lawful to violate.

13 Then they answered, and said before the king: Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Juda, hath not regarded thy law, nor the decree that thou hast made: but three times a day he maketh his prayer.

14 Now when the king had heard these words, he was very much grieved, and in behalf of Daniel he set his heart to deliver him and even till sunset he laboured to save him.

15 But those mer. perceiving the king's design, said to him: Know thou, O king, that the law of the Medes and Persians is, that no decree which the king hath made, may be altered.

16 Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of the lions. And the king said to Daniel: Thy God, whom thou always servest, he will deliver thee.

17 And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den: which the king sealed with his own ring, and with the ring of his nobles, that nothing should be done against Daniel.

18 And the king went away to his house and laid himself down without taking supper, and meat was not set before him, and even sleep departed from him.

19 Then the king rising very early in the morning, went in haste to the lions' den:

20 And coming near to the den, cried with a lamentable voice to Daniel, and said to him: Daniel, servant of the living God, hath thy God, whom thou servest always, been able, thinkest thou, to deliver thee from the lions?

21 And Daniel answering the king, said: O king, live for ever:

22 My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut up the mouths of the lions, and they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him justice hath been found in me: yea and before thee, O king, I have done no offence.

23 Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and he commanded that Daniel should be taken out of the den: and Daniel was taken out of the den, and no hurt was found in him, because he believed in his God.

24 And by the king's commandment, those men were brought that bad accused Daniel: and they were cast into the lions' den, they and their children, and their wives: and they did not reach the bottom of the den, before the lions caught them, and broke all their bones in pieces.

25 Then king Darius wrote to all people, tribes, and languages, dwelling in the whole earth: PEACE be multiplied unto you.

26 It is decreed by me, that in all my empire and my kingdom all men dread and fear the God of Daniel. For he is the living and eternal God for ever: and his kingdom shall not be destroyed, and his power shall be for ever.

27 He is the deliverer, and saviour, doing signs and wonders in heaven, and in earth: who hath delivered Daniel out of the lions' den.

28 Now Daniel continued unto the reign of Darius, and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

True Christian Religion #776

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776. VII. This, the Lord's second coming, is not in person, but in the Word, which is from Him and which He is.

We read in many passages that the Lord will come in the clouds of heaven 1 ; e.g, Matthew 17:5; 24:30; 26:64; Mark 14:62; Luke 9:34-35; 21:27; Revelation 1:7; 14:14; Daniel 7:13. But no one up to the present has known what the clouds of heaven mean; they have thought that He would appear in them in person. It has so far been unknown that the clouds of heaven mean the Word in its literal sense, and that glory and power, with which He is to come at that time (Matthew 24:30), mean the spiritual sense of the Word. This is because no one has even guessed that there is a spiritual sense in the Word, as there is in essence in this example. Since the Lord has now revealed to me the spiritual sense of the Word, and has allowed me to associate with angels and spirits in their world, as if I were one of them, it has been disclosed that the cloud of heaven means the Word in its natural sense, glory the Word in its spiritual sense, and power means the Lord's strength through the Word. This meaning of the clouds of heaven can be seen from these passages in the Word:

There is none like the God of Jeshurun, riding on the heaven, and in magnificence upon the clouds, Deuteronomy 33:26-27.

Sing to God, praise His name, extol Him who rides upon the clouds, Psalms 68:4.

Jehovah riding upon a light cloud, Isaiah 19:1.

[2] To ride means to instruct in Divine truths from the Word, for a horse means the understanding of the Word (see Apocalypse Revealed 298). Anyone can see that God does not ride upon the clouds. Further:

God rode upon the cherubim, and made the clouds of the heavens His tent, Psalms 18:10-11.

Cherubim also mean the Word (see Apocalypse Revealed 239, 672).

Jehovah binds the waters in His clouds, and stretches out His cloud over His throne, Job 26:8-9.

Give strength to God 2 , strength upon the clouds, Psalms 68:34, Jehovah will create 3 over every dwelling of Zion a cloud by day; for glory will be a covering over all, Isaiah 4:5.

The Word in its literal sense was also represented by the cloud in which Jehovah came down on Mount Sinai, when He proclaimed the Law. The provisions of the Law then proclaimed were the rudiments of the Word.

[3] The following facts may be added in support. The spiritual world has clouds just as the natural world does, but they are of a different origin. In the spiritual world there are sometimes shining clouds over the heavens of the angels, but dark clouds over the hells. Shining clouds over the heavens of the angels betoken obscurity there resulting from the literal sense of the Word; but when those clouds are dispersed, it means that the spiritual sense has brought them its clarity 4 . Dark clouds over the hells betoken the falsification and profanation of the Word. The reason clouds have such meanings in the spiritual world is because light, which is radiated from the Lord as the sun of that world, stands for Divine truth. This is why He is Himself called light (John 1:9; 12:35). This also is why the Word itself, which is stored in the sanctuaries of church-buildings there, is to be seen with a halo of shining light; when dimmed, this is due to clouds.

Footnotes:

1. Or: of the sky.

2. The Latin has 'to Jehovah', corrected in the Author's copy.

3. The Latin has 'has created', corrected in the Author's copy.

4. The Latin has 'charity' for 'clarity'.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

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