Daniel 6:2–3

His rise began when Nebuchadnezzar made him a judge (Dan. 2:49), Belshazzar made him prime minister (Dan. 5:29), and Darius kept him in office, with the added post of what I may call the king's accountant-general… He received this high position because he was so trusted.

Just before his city fell, Belshazzar had proclaimed Daniel the third ruler in the kingdom. Darius promoted him to first place under himself. In doing so, Darius was God's instrument for carrying out His purposes.

Later in the book we find that there was nothing at all in Daniel's own administration that harmed the king. Everything the king put under Daniel's hand was perfectly safe; his enemies could find no charge against him on that account. There is something sadly wrong with us as Christians if this is not true of us.

Daniel was not only a man of excellent spirit, but a man of practical righteousness, for his accounts were all right. Are your accounts all right? His moral uprightness and integrity, in all matters of trust, increased his value in the eyes of King Darius, who "planned to set him over the whole kingdom."

Daniel's promotion here is not the result of any miracle from God, as it was under the mighty Nebuchadnezzar. He reached his high post on his recognised merit alone… What a testimony to a servant of God set in a position made difficult by being so high! I wish that all today who fill much lower and far easier posts had a like testimony from those around them.

That a child of the captivity should rise to this high position stirred up the jealousy of the Chaldean presidents and princes. Moved by jealousy, they sought in malice to find some fault they could use to bring a charge against him before the king.

Daniel was no unknown man, and he was hated both as a Jew and as a true worshipper of the God of heaven. His rise in the government stirred up even more envy and jealousy among the nobles, the princes, and the presidents he had been set over. A man of unshakeable faithfulness, who sought only God's approval, could not be loved by men with corrupt and greedy hearts.

They concluded that the only possible complaint would have to come through the law of his God. That is a good lesson for the Christian. We should carry out our dealings with the world so faithfully that the world could only condemn us by intruding into the things of God and passing laws that we could obey only by disobeying God.

How humiliating when people who make a high profession keep breaking down in the most ordinary affairs of home and business life! Few things discourage the heart more than what one so often hears: that so-called Christians are the most unsatisfactory people to deal with. They are bad masters, or bad servants, or bad tradesmen. They neglect their business, charge higher prices, and give worse value than those who profess nothing at all.

An excellent spirit was in him. That is a very fine quality, friends. A man's spirit is worth far more than the things he says. I may say, by God's help, many a nice thing, and you may hear, enjoy, and then forget it. But if I have done anything nasty to you, you will never forget it. Oh, to be a Daniel in spirit! We shall never be prophets. We are not called by God in that way, but we can all cultivate an "excellent spirit."

Daniel's promotion here is not the result of any miracle from God, as it was under the earlier king Nebuchadnezzar. He reached his high post on his recognised merit alone... What a testimony to a saint of God placed in a position made difficult by its very height! I wish that all who fill much lower and far easier posts today had the same testimony from the people around them. Daniel's enemies had to admit that they could find no fault or error in him. Why is it that even the friends of Christians can hardly say as much about them? "A good testimony from those outside" matters far more than marked ability to preach or talk about the holy things of God.

Just before his city fell, Belshazzar had named Daniel the third ruler in the kingdom. Darius promoted him to the first place under himself, and in doing so the king was God's instrument for carrying out His purposes. Daniel was no unknown man; and he was hated both as a Jew and as a true worshipper of the God of heaven. His rise in the government stirred up still more envy and jealousy among the nobles, the princes, and the officials he now ranked above. Men with corrupt and greedy hearts could not love a man of unbreakable faithfulness who sought only God's approval.

He was a saint, and he was in a very difficult position. He had a high place in the world. The higher your place in this world, the more you come, in a sense, under its power. The more I receive from the world — in the everyday sense — the more I come under its power, unless I keep my eye fixed on the Lord, clearly and always. Daniel's eye was certainly on the Lord. So the Lord held him up, and shamed those who plotted his downfall.

All these presidents and princes looked for some fault in the way Daniel ran the affairs of state. But he was faithful, so they could find no "error" and no "fault" in him. They decided that the only way to bring a charge against him was through the law of his God. That is a healthy lesson for the Christian. Our dealings with the world should be so faithful that the world could only condemn us by pushing into the things of God — by passing laws we could not keep without disobeying God.

How humiliating when those who make a high profession are found constantly breaking down in the most commonplace affairs of domestic and commercial life! There are few things which more tend to discourage the heart than to hear — as, alas, one so often does — that Christians, so-called, are the most unsatisfactory persons to have any dealings with — that they are bad masters, or bad servants, or bad tradesmen — that they do not attend to their business, that they charge higher prices and give worse value than those who make no profession at all.