Daniel 6:8 meaning summary explained with word-by-word analysis enriched with context, commentary and Cross References from KJV, NIV, ESV and NLT.
Daniel 6:8 kjv
Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not.
Daniel 6:8 nkjv
Now, O king, establish the decree and sign the writing, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which does not alter."
Daniel 6:8 niv
Now, Your Majesty, issue the decree and put it in writing so that it cannot be altered?in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed."
Daniel 6:8 esv
Now, O king, establish the injunction and sign the document, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked."
Daniel 6:8 nlt
And now, Your Majesty, issue and sign this law so it cannot be changed, an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked."
Daniel 6 8 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Esth 1:19 | If it please the king, let a royal decree go out...and let it be written among the laws of the Persians and Medes, so that it cannot be revoked. | Persian law cannot be revoked |
| Esth 8:8 | Write an edict also concerning the Jews, as seems good to you, in the king's name...for a document written in the king's name and sealed with the king's signet cannot be revoked. | Sealed royal decree is unchangeable |
| Dan 6:7 | All the governors of the kingdom, the prefects and satraps, the counselors and high commissioners have consulted together to establish a royal ordinance and to enforce an interdict... | The conspirators' plan |
| Dan 6:12 | "Has not the king signed an interdict...that if anyone makes petition to any god or man for thirty days, except to you, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions?" | Reference to the signed decree |
| Num 23:19 | God is not a man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? | God's unchanging nature contrasts human law |
| Mal 3:6 | For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. | The immutability of God |
| Ps 33:10-11 | The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the peoples. The counsel of the Lord stands forever. | God's counsel trumps human schemes |
| Prov 21:1 | The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will. | God's sovereignty over kings and their decisions |
| Isa 40:8 | The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. | Permanence of God's Word vs. transient human things |
| Matt 5:18 | For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. | Permanence of God's Law |
| Ps 7:15 | He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made. | The wicked's trap turns on them |
| Prov 26:27 | Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling. | Consequences for the plotters |
| Ps 9:15-16 | The nations have sunk in the pit that they made; in the net that they hid, their own foot has been caught. | Divine retribution against the wicked |
| Esth 7:10 | So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. | Haman's fate, similar to Daniel's accusers |
| Ps 5:10 | Make them bear their guilt, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; because of their many transgressions cast them out... | Prayer against wicked counsel |
| Isa 44:25 | who frustrates the signs of liars and makes fools of diviners; who turns wise men back and makes their knowledge foolish; | God thwarts wicked human schemes and 'wisdom' |
| Dan 3:17-18 | If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace...But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods. | Example of faithfulness despite human decree |
| Acts 4:19 | But Peter and John answered them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge." | Loyalty to God over human authority |
| 1 Pet 4:12 | Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. | Expectation of trials for faith |
| Gal 1:8-9 | But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. | Warning against altering divine truth/decrees |
| 1 Thess 5:21 | But test everything; hold fast what is good. | Discerning human decrees against God's will |
| Zech 8:17 | do not devise evil in your hearts against one another, and love no false oath, for all these things I hate, declares the Lord. | God's hatred of malicious plots and deceit |
Daniel 6 verses
Daniel 6 8 meaning
Daniel 6:8 expresses a manipulative plea from Daniel's adversaries to King Darius. They urge the king to solidify their proposed thirty-day decree by making it an unchangeable law, specifically invoking the famed permanence of Medo-Persian legal statutes. Their intention is to prevent the king from later rescinding or altering the decree once Daniel, the target of their plot, inevitably violates it.
Daniel 6 8 Context
Daniel chapter 6 portrays the administrative excellence of Daniel under King Darius, leading to Daniel's promotion above other high officials. This superior position ignited envy and resentment among the other administrators and satraps, who then conspired to find fault with Daniel. Recognizing Daniel's irreproachable character in public service, they realized that the only way to ensnare him was through his steadfast religious devotion. Therefore, they concocted a plan to leverage the king's ego and the unalterable nature of Medo-Persian law. They approached Darius with a seemingly unifying proposal: a decree forbidding petitions to any god or man, save the king, for thirty days. Verse 8 immediately follows this proposal, representing their crucial next step: to legally bind the king and prevent him from showing mercy or changing his mind once Daniel inevitably breaks the edict through his worship of God.
Daniel 6 8 Word analysis
- Now: (Aramaic: כְּעַן, kəʿan) Signifies immediate urgency, compelling the king to act without delay or reconsideration. It introduces a decisive point in the conspirators' petition.
- O king: (Aramaic: מַלְכָּא, malkāʾ) A formal and deferential address, used to persuade and emphasize the gravity and royal authority of their request.
- establish: (Aramaic: קַיֵּם, qayyem) A Piel (intensive) imperative meaning "make firm, confirm, establish, keep." It goes beyond simply making a decree; it emphasizes the act of making it steadfast and irreversible. This highlights the conspirators' intent to make the law unshakeable.
- the injunction: (Aramaic: אֱסָר, ʾĕsar) Refers to the decree or prohibition that they had proposed, specifically the ban on prayer or petition to anyone but the king for thirty days. The term signifies a binding restriction.
- and sign: (Aramaic: וְתִרְשֹׁם, wəṯiršōm) From rəsham, "to sign, inscribe, engrave." This denotes the formal royal endorsement, making the decree official and legally enforceable by adding the king's seal or mark. The act of signing provides royal authentication and seals its permanence.
- the document: (Aramaic: כְּתָבָא, kəṯāvāʾ) Refers to the written edict or law containing the proposed prohibition. It signifies the formal, tangible record of the king's command.
- so that it cannot be changed: (Aramaic: דִּי לָא תֶהֱוֵא לְשַׁנָּאָה, dî lāʾ tehewe ləšannāʾāh) This phrase, "that it not be for changing," emphasizes the core intent: to render the decree immune to any future alteration or revocation, ensuring that any violation would carry its full, unmitigated penalty.
- according to the law of the Medes and Persians: (Aramaic: כְּדָת מָדַי וּפָרַס, kəḏāt māḏay ūfāras) This specific legal tradition was famous throughout the ancient world for its unalterable nature. Invoking it immediately grants the decree ultimate authority and permanence, transcending even the king's ordinary power to revoke his own words. This particular legal aspect of Medo-Persian law is especially highlighted in Daniel and Esther, setting a specific stage for divine intervention. It served as a point of comparison and a polemic, implicitly asking which law was truly supreme: the unchanging human law, or God's eternal law.
- which cannot be repealed: (Aramaic: דִּי לָא תֶעְדֵּא, dî lāʾ teʿēdeʾ) From ʿədāʾ, "to pass away, abolish, cancel." This reinforces the preceding phrase with a stronger verb for abolition or annulment, reiterating the decree's absolute and unchangeable nature, ensuring it could not be set aside or allowed to lapse.
Daniel 6 8 Bonus section
The double emphasis on "cannot be changed" (ləšannāʾāh) and "cannot be repealed" (teʿēdeʾ) within this single verse stresses the profound finality intended by Daniel's adversaries. They sought to eliminate any legal loophole or any opportunity for Darius to exercise mercy towards Daniel, explicitly binding the king by the very laws he presided over. This detail intensifies the dramatic tension and highlights the desperate nature of the conspiracy. It serves as a reminder that human laws, though formidable in their context, are ultimately temporary and fallible when compared to the eternal, unchanging, and ultimately triumphing decrees of the Most High God.
Daniel 6 8 Commentary
Daniel 6:8 is pivotal in the narrative, articulating the malicious precision of Daniel's enemies. By invoking the Medo-Persian law of irrevocability, they engineered a foolproof trap, forcing King Darius's hand against his favored official. This wasn't merely a royal decree; it was a law purposefully made immune to even royal recall, highlighting the immense pressure such a legal framework placed on individuals and rulers. The verse perfectly sets the stage for God's ultimate demonstration of sovereignty, where an "unchangeable" human law is dramatically overcome by divine intervention, underscoring that no earthly edict can ultimately thwart God's will for His faithful. It exemplifies a common biblical theme: human schemes, no matter how carefully laid, are subject to divine oversight and often turn back upon their architects.