Daniel 6:20
King James Version (1769)
Other translations
| Verse | KJV | BSB | ASV |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel: and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? | When he reached the den, he cried out in a voice of anguish, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?” | And when he came near unto the den to Daniel, he cried with a lamentable voice; the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? |
In context
AI-assisted, sourcedAfter a sleepless night, King Darius hurries to the lions' den at dawn and calls out in anguish to Daniel. He had been bound by his own decree, which by the law of the Medes and Persians could not be changed, to throw Daniel in, and now he asks whether Daniel's God has been able to save him. Daniel answers alive, saying God sent his angel and shut the lions' mouths. Daniel 6:8Daniel 6:14Daniel 6:15Daniel 6:16Daniel 6:18Daniel 6:19Daniel 6:20Daniel 6:22
SpeakingDarius, the king who signed the decree and then labored in vain to rescue Daniel from it. Daniel 6:9Daniel 6:14Daniel 6:20
ToDaniel, who is inside the sealed den of lions. Daniel 6:17Daniel 6:20
Also involvedThe men who accused Daniel are later thrown into the same den, and all the kingdom is told to fear Daniel's God. Daniel 6:24Daniel 6:26
The king calls Daniel "servant of the living God" and asks if the God he serves continually could deliver him. It echoes the king's own words the night before, "he will deliver thee." The answer comes at once: God shut the lions' mouths, and no hurt was found on Daniel "because he believed in his God." Daniel 6:16Daniel 6:20Daniel 6:22Daniel 6:23
At the mouth of the lions' den, sealed with a stone, in the realm of Darius where Daniel served. Daniel 6:17Daniel 6:20Daniel overview
The eventsEarly in the morning after Daniel was cast into the den, in the reign of Darius, after Babylon fell to the Medes and Persians. Daniel 6:19Daniel overview
WrittenTraditional: written by Daniel in the 500s BC. Scholarly: many critical scholars date the book's final form to about 167-164 BC, while others keep the 500s BC date. Daniel overview
HereThe king's question sets up the proof that Daniel's God is truly living and able to save. Darius then confesses it himself in a decree: "he is the living God... He delivereth and rescueth." Daniel 6:20Daniel 6:26Daniel 6:27
In the whole of ScriptureDaniel shows that the most High rules over the kingdoms of men and shows his people how to stay faithful under foreign rulers. This scene matches Daniel 3:17, where Daniel's friends said "our God whom we serve is able to deliver us." Daniel overviewDaniel 3:17
For readersDaniel kept praying as he always had, even when it was outlawed, and God proved able to deliver him. Paul voiced the same trust: "the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work." Daniel 6:10Daniel 6:232 Timothy 4:18
- livingחַי
Meaning "alive, living," it sets Daniel's God apart as alive. Darius repeats it in his decree: "he is the living God, and stedfast for ever." Strong's H2417Daniel 6:26
- servestפְּלַח
The word means to serve, worship, or pay reverence to. Daniel's service was worship, shown in his daily prayer before his God. Strong's H6399Daniel 6:10
- continuallyתְּדִירָא
It means continuance or constantly. Daniel prayed three times a day "as he did aforetime," a steady habit, not a crisis reaction. Strong's H8411Daniel 6:10
- deliverשֵׁיזִב
Meaning to deliver or rescue, the same idea returns in the king's praise: "He delivereth and rescueth." Strong's H7804Daniel 6:27
- lamentableעֲצַב
It means pained or grieved. The king's voice was full of grief, fitting his sleepless, fasting night. Strong's H6088Daniel 6:18
Takeaway
A pagan king asked whether the God Daniel served continually could save him, and the answer was yes. The living God delivered his faithful servant, and he is able to save those who come to him. Daniel 6:20Daniel 6:22Daniel 6:27Hebrews 7:25
Drafted by AI from the Scripture and data shown under “Show sources,” then checked automatically and by a second AI pass. Updated 2026-10-28.
The world around the text
Behind this verse
- Lions kept by kings
- The kings of Mesopotamia kept lions and hunted them as a show of royal power, as the Assyrian palace reliefs of Ashurbanipal's lion hunt show. Daniel 6:7Daniel 6:16Assyrian palace reliefs, Ashurbanipal's lion hunt
About 605-536 BC. King of Babylon: Nebuchadnezzar (605-562 BC). Where Daniel lived and served for about seventy years. The capital of the Babylonian empire, on the Euphrates south of modern Baghdad, in the land the Bible calls Shinar and Chaldea.
Who ruled
- King of BabylonNebuchadnezzar605-562 BC
The king who besieged Jerusalem, carried Daniel and the temple vessels to Babylon, and later destroyed the city and temple. His own building inscriptions boast of the Babylon he built. Daniel 1:1-22 Kings 24:12 Kings 25:8-10Jeremiah 25:1Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- Last king of Babylon, and his son who ruled in his placeNabonidus and Belshazzar556-539 BC
Nabonidus spent about ten years at the oasis of Tema in Arabia and left his son Belshazzar to rule in Babylon. That is why Belshazzar could only offer Daniel the place of "third ruler in the kingdom": he was himself second. Daniel 5:1Daniel 5:7Daniel 5:29Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Verse Account of Nabonidus
- Received the kingdom after Babylon fellDarius the MedianFrom 539 BC
Daniel says he "took the kingdom, being about threescore and two years old" and set 120 princes over it. Records outside the Bible do not name him; he has been identified with Gubaru, the governor Cyrus set over Babylon, or with Cyrus himself. Daniel 5:31Daniel 6:1Daniel 9:1Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)
- King of PersiaCyrus559-530 BC
He united the Medes and Persians, took Babylon in 539 BC, and let the exiles go home to rebuild the temple, as Isaiah had named him beforehand. Daniel 1:21Daniel 6:28Daniel 10:1Ezra 1:1-4Isaiah 44:28-45:1Cyrus Cylinder
- King of JudahJehoiakim609-598 BC
Judah's king when Daniel was taken. Jeremiah warned him and his people that the land would serve Babylon seventy years. Daniel 1:1-22 Kings 23:36-24:6Jeremiah 25:1-11
What was happening, 612 BC to 167 BC
- 612 BCWarNineveh falls
Babylon and the Medes destroyed Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, as Nahum and Zephaniah had foretold. Babylon became the great power of the region. Nahum 3:7Zephaniah 2:13Fall of Nineveh Chronicle (ABC 3)
- 605 BCWarBattle of Carchemish
Nebuchadnezzar defeated Pharaoh Necho of Egypt at Carchemish on the Euphrates, in Jehoiakim's fourth year. The same year he came against Jerusalem and took the first captives, Daniel among them. Jeremiah 46:2Daniel 1:1-4Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- 597 BCWarJerusalem surrenders
Nebuchadnezzar took King Jehoiachin, his nobles and craftsmen to Babylon. The prophet Ezekiel went into exile with them. 2 Kings 24:10-17Ezekiel 1:2Babylonian Chronicles (ABC 5)
- 586 BCWarJerusalem and the temple destroyed
Babylon's army burned the temple and the city and broke down its walls. Daniel later prays over "the desolations of Jerusalem" and asks God to shine on his "sanctuary that is desolate." 2 Kings 25:8-10Jeremiah 52:12-14Daniel 9:2Daniel 9:17
- c. 575 BCBuildingBabylon rebuilt in splendor
Nebuchadnezzar rebuilt Babylon with great walls, palaces and the blue-glazed Ishtar Gate, and his inscriptions praise his own work. Compare his boast: "Is not this great Babylon, that I have built?" Daniel 4:30Nebuchadnezzar's East India House InscriptionHerodotus, Histories 1.178-183
- 562 BCRulersNebuchadnezzar dies
His son Evil-merodach became king and released Jehoiachin of Judah from prison. 2 Kings 25:27-30Jeremiah 52:31-34
- c. 553-543 BCRulersNabonidus leaves Babylon to Belshazzar
King Nabonidus stayed at Tema in Arabia for about ten years, and the yearly New Year festival in Babylon was not held. Belshazzar governed in Babylon. Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Daniel 5:1Daniel 7:1
- 550 BCWarCyrus unites the Medes and Persians
Cyrus of Persia defeated Astyages king of the Medes, joining the two peoples in one kingdom. Daniel's vision names the ram's two horns as "the kings of Media and Persia," the higher coming up last. Daniel 8:3Daniel 8:20Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Herodotus, Histories 1.127-130
- October 539 BCWarBabylon falls to Cyrus
Cyrus's army entered Babylon without a long siege. Herodotus says the people were feasting when the city was taken. Daniel records that "in that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain." Daniel 5:30-31Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7)Herodotus, Histories 1.191Cyrus Cylinder
- 538 BCGod's peopleCyrus lets the exiles return
In his first year over Babylon, Cyrus proclaimed that the Jews could go back and build the LORD's house in Jerusalem. Daniel "continued even unto the first year of king Cyrus." Ezra 1:1-42 Chronicles 36:22-23Daniel 1:21Cyrus Cylinder
- c. 536 BCGod's peopleThe temple's foundation is laid
The returned exiles rebuilt the altar and laid the foundation of the temple. In the third year of Cyrus, Daniel was still in the east, mourning and praying. Ezra 3:1-11Daniel 10:1-3
- 334-331 BCWarAlexander the Great conquers Persia
Alexander of Macedon crossed into Asia and overthrew the Persian empire within four years. Daniel 8:21 names the rough goat as "the king of Grecia" and its great horn as "the first king." Daniel 8:5-8Daniel 8:21Arrian, Anabasis of Alexander 1-3
- 323-301 BCWarAlexander's empire is divided
Alexander died young, and after twenty years of war his generals divided his empire, chiefly into four kingdoms. Daniel 8:22 says "four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power." Daniel 8:8Daniel 8:22Daniel 11:4Diodorus Siculus, Library 18-20Plutarch, Demetrius 28-30
- 167 BCWarAntiochus IV defiles the temple
The Greek king Antiochus IV banned Jewish worship and set up a pagan altar on the altar of burnt offering. 1 Maccabees calls it "the abomination of desolation." Two centuries later Jesus spoke of "the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet" as still to come. 1 Maccabees 1:54-59Josephus, Antiquities 12.5.4Matthew 24:15
The full picture: places, culture and daily life. Scripture first, then ancient records of these years (the Babylonian Chronicles, the Cyrus Cylinder, Nebuchadnezzar's inscriptions) and ancient writers (Herodotus, Arrian, Diodorus, Josephus). Drafted by Claude and not yet reviewed by a person.
Original Aramaic words
This passage was written in Aramaic, the common language of the Babylonian and Persian empires, which the Jews of the exile also spoke. It uses the same alphabet as Hebrew.
| English | Aramaic | Say it | Strong's | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| and just as approached he | וּכְמִקְרְבֵ֣הּ | u-khe-mik-re-VEH | H7127 | to approachקְרֵב (qe.rev) 1) to approach, come near 1a) (P'al) to approach 1b) (Pael) to offer, draw near 1c) (Aphel) to be summoned |
| to den the | לְגֻבָּ֔א | le-gu-BA' | H1358 | denגֹּב (gov) pit, den (of lions) |
| to Daniel | לְדָ֣נִיֵּ֔אל | le-DA-ni-YEL | H1841H | Danielדָּנִיֵּאל, דָּנִאֵל (da.niy.yel) A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Ezr.8.2 § Daniel = "God is my judge" 1) the 4th of the greater prophets, taken as hostage in the first deportation to Babylon, because of the gift of God of the interpretation of dreams, he became the 2nd in command of the Babylon empire and lasted through the end of the Babylonian empire and into the Persian empire. His prophecies are the key to the understanding of end time events. Noted for his purity and holiness by contemporary prophet, Ezekiel 1a) also, 'Belteshazzar' (H01095 or H01096) |
| with a voice | בְּקָ֥ל | be-KAL | H7032G | voice: soundקָל (qal) : sound voice, sound Aramaic of qol (קוֹל ": sound" H6963H) |
| pained | עֲצִ֖יב | 'a-TZIV | H6088 | to painעֲצַב (a.tsav) 1) to pain, grieve 1a) (P'al) pained (participle) |
| he cried out | זְעִ֑ק | ze-'IK | H2200 | to cry outזְעִ֑ק (ze.iq) (P'al) to cry, cry out, call Aramaic of za.aq (זָעַק "to cry out" H2199) |
| [was] replying | עָנֵ֨ה | 'a-NEH | H6032 | to answerעֲנָה (a.nah) 1) to answer, respond 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to answer, make reply 1a2) to respond |
| king the | מַלְכָּ֜א | mal-KA' | H4430 | kingמֶ֫לֶךְ (me.lekh) king Aramaic of me.lekh (מֶ֫לֶךְ "king" H4428) § 1) king |
| and [was] saying | וְאָמַ֣ר | ve-'a-MAR | H0560 | to sayאֲמַר (a.mar) (P'al) to say, to speak, to command, to tell, to relate Aramaic of a.mar (אָמַר "to say" H0559) |
| to Daniel | לְדָנִיֵּ֗אל | le-da-ni-YEL | H1841H | Danielדָּנִיֵּאל, דָּנִאֵל (da.niy.yel) A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Ezr.8.2 § Daniel = "God is my judge" 1) the 4th of the greater prophets, taken as hostage in the first deportation to Babylon, because of the gift of God of the interpretation of dreams, he became the 2nd in command of the Babylon empire and lasted through the end of the Babylonian empire and into the Persian empire. His prophecies are the key to the understanding of end time events. Noted for his purity and holiness by contemporary prophet, Ezekiel 1a) also, 'Belteshazzar' (H01095 or H01096) |
| O Daniel | דָּֽנִיֵּאל֙ | da-ni-yeL | H1841H | Danielדָּנִיֵּאל, דָּנִאֵל (da.niy.yel) A man living at the time of Exile and Return, first mentioned at Ezr.8.2 § Daniel = "God is my judge" 1) the 4th of the greater prophets, taken as hostage in the first deportation to Babylon, because of the gift of God of the interpretation of dreams, he became the 2nd in command of the Babylon empire and lasted through the end of the Babylonian empire and into the Persian empire. His prophecies are the key to the understanding of end time events. Noted for his purity and holiness by contemporary prophet, Ezekiel 1a) also, 'Belteshazzar' (H01095 or H01096) |
| [the] servant of | עֲבֵד֙ | 'a-VED | H5649 | servant/slaveעֲבַד (a.vad) servant, slave Aramaic of e.ved (עֶ֫בֶד "servant/slave" H5650) |
| God the | אֱלָהָ֣א | 'e-la-HA' | H0426 | godאֱלָהּ (e.lah) 1) god, God 1a) god, heathen deity 1b) God (of Israel) |
| the living | חַיָּ֔א | chai-YA' | H2417 | livingחַי (chay) alive, living, life Aramaic of chay (חַי "alive" H2416A) |
| God your | אֱלָהָ֗ךְ | 'e-la-HAKH | H0426 | godאֱלָהּ (e.lah) 1) god, God 1a) god, heathen deity 1b) God (of Israel) |
| whom | דִּ֣י | di | H1768 | thatדִּי (di) part of relation 1) who, which, that mark of genitive 2) that of, which belongs to, that conj 3) that, because |
| you | אַ֤נְתְּ | 'an-tah | H0607 | youאַנְתָּה (an.tah) you, thou (second pers. sing.) Aramaic of at.tah (אַתָּ֫ה "you(m.s.)" H0859A) |
| [are] paying reverence | פָּֽלַֽח־ | pa-lach- | H6399 | to serveפְּלַח (pe.lach) 1) to serve, worship, revere, minister for, pay reverence to 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to pay reverence to 1a2) to serve |
| in the continuance | בִּתְדִירָ֔א | bit-di-RA' | H8411 | continuanceתְּדִירָא (te.di.ra) 1) continuance, continuity, perpetuity 1a) constantly (as adverb) |
| ¿ was he able | הַיְכִ֥ל | hay-KHIL | H3202 | be ableיְכִל (ye.khel) 1) to be able 1a) (P'al) 1a1) to be able 1a2) to prevail |
| to deliver you | לְשֵׁיזָבוּתָ֖ךְ | le-shei-za-vu-TAKH | H7804 | to rescueשֵׁיזִב (she.zav) (Peel or Peil) to deliver Aramaic of shuv (שׁוּב ": return" H7725) |
| from | מִן־ | min- | H4481 | fromמִן־ (min) 1) from, out of, by, by reason of, at, more than 1a) from, out of (of place) 1b) from, by, as a result of, by reason of, at, according to, (of source) 1c) from (of time) 1d) beyond, more than (in comparisons) |
| lions the | אַרְיָוָתָֽא׃ | 'ar-ya-va-TA' | H0744 | lionאַרְיֵה (ar.yeh) lion Aramaic of ar.yeh (אַרְיֵה "lion" H0738B) |
Words and meanings from STEPBible data (Tyndale House, Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). The capitalized syllable is the stressed one.