John Calvin Commentary Daniel 6:14-15

"Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore displeased, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him; and he labored till the going down of the sun to rescue him. Then these men assembled together unto the king, and said unto the king, Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians, that no interdict nor statute which the king establisheth may be changed." — Daniel 6:14-15 (ASV)

First, Daniel relates that the king was disturbed when he perceived the malice of his nobles, which had previously escaped him; for their intention and objective had never occurred to him. He realized he had been deceived and entrapped, and therefore he was disturbed. Here again, we are taught how cautiously kings should avoid corrupt advice, since they are besieged on every side by treacherous men, whose only objective is to gain by their false representations, and to oppress their enemies, and those from whom they hope for plunder or who might support their evil ways.

Because so many snares surround kings, they should be all the more cautious in guarding against cunning. They are too late in acknowledging they have been outmaneuvered when no remedy is left, partly through fear, and partly through wishing to protect their own reputation; and they prefer offending God to suffering any outward disrespect from others. Therefore, since kings consider their own honor so sacred, they persevere in their evil undertakings, even when their conscience accuses them. And even if justice itself were to appear visibly before them, this restraint would still not be sufficient to hold them back when ambition urges them in the opposite direction, and they are unwilling to lose the slightest portion of their reputation among people. The case of Darius provides us with an example of this.

First of all, it is said, He was sorrowful when he heard these words, and was anxious until sunset about the way of snatching Daniel from death. He wished this to be done, provided his own honor remained intact and his nobles were satisfied.

But on the one hand, he feared disunity if his nobles were to conspire to cause a disturbance; and on the other hand, he was moved by a foolish fear, because he did not wish to incur the charge of fickleness that awaited him, and so he was overcome and yielded to the wicked desires of these men.

Therefore, although he labored until sunset to free Daniel, yet that perverse shame I have spoken of prevailed, and then the fear of dissension. For when we do not lean on God’s help, we are always forced to waver, even if we are anxious to be sincere in our motives.

Thus Pilate wished to liberate Christ, but was terrified by the threats of the people, when they threatened him with Caesar's displeasure (John 19:12). And it is no wonder, since faith alone is a sure and steadfast support on which we may lean while fearlessly carrying out our duty, and so overcome all fears.

But when we lack confidence, we are, as I have said, sure to be fickle. Thus Darius, through fear of a conspiracy of his nobles against him, allowed Daniel to suffer innocently from their cruelty. Then that false shame I have mentioned was added, because he was unwilling to appear thoughtless by suddenly revoking his own edict, as it was a law with the Medes and Persians that whatever came from kings was inviolable!

Daniel now states this. He says, those men assembled together. When they saw the king hesitate and doubt, they became fierce and confrontational with him. When it is said they met together, this relates to their instilling fear in him. They say, Know, O king! He knew it well enough, and they did not need to instruct him in any unknown matter, but they treated him in a threatening manner.

“What? Do you not see how utterly the royal name will be deprived of its authority in the future if he violates your edict with impunity? Will you then permit yourself to become a laughingstock?” Finally, they intimated that he would not be king unless he avenged the insult Daniel offered him by neglecting his commandment.

Know, therefore, O king, that the Persians and Medes — he himself was king of the Medes, but it is just as if they said, “What kind of rumor will spread through all your subject provinces? For you know how strong this custom is among the Medes and Persians: the king must not change his edict. If, therefore, you should set such an example, will not all your subjects instantly rise against you? And will you not be contemptible to them?” We see, then, how the satraps raged against their king and frightened him from any change of plan. And they also linked the edict with the statute, which the king had resolved upon, in order to impress upon him the necessity of not changing a single decree that he had often and repeatedly sanctioned. It follows: