"Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime."
Daniel 6:10
Part 4
Yesterday: We Are Taught to Pray
“He went into his house.”
“And his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem.”
Today: Each Believer Needs Build a Consistent Prayer Life
“Daniel always prayed to God three times every day. Three times every day, he bowed down on his knees to pray and praise God. Even though Daniel heard about the new law, he still went to his house to pray. He went up to the upper room of his house and opened the windows that faced toward Jerusalem. Then Daniel bowed down on his knees and prayed just as he always had done” (Daniel 6:10, HSB [1]).
“He kneeled upon his knees.”
The third thing that Daniel did was to get down on his knees humbly before Jehovah.
“Kneeling is a begging posture, and we must all come to God as beggars” [2] (Heslop).
“Humble attitudes in prayer become humble suppliants” [3] (JFB).
Just a thought. If we are not careful, praying on our knees can become just as pretentious as the hypocrite praying on the street corner aloud. When we think of “the position of prayer,” the most important thing to remember is the position of our heart. We need to be praying humbly, in sincerity and truth, whether standing, sitting, or kneeling on our knees.
“Three times a day.”
We are learning that Daniel prayed humbly, consistently, and often throughout the day. He did not pray only in times of daily need or emergencies!
“But Daniel, knowing of the decree, followed his customary practice (just as he had done before) of going to his own upstairs room three times each day to pray to … God” [4] (BKC).
David’s word on prayer seems to have become the norm for the Jews.
“Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice” (Psalm 55:17).
Daniel had specific times when he prayed from his “prayer closet.”
“The third, sixth, and ninth hour; our nine, twelve, and three o’clock” [5] (JFB).
We see this pattern of prayer by some in the book of Acts. They prayed during these hours.
The third hour – Acts 2:15.
The sixth hour – Acts 10:9.
The ninth hour – Acts 3:1, 10:30.
It’s not that these hours are the sacred magic hours for prayer for us today. But their persistence and consistency in prayer teach us that we need to be praying throughout the day.
“That does not tell you how often he prayed, but how often he was in the posture of prayer. Doubtless, he prayed 300 times a day if necessary – his heart was always having commerce with the skies, but thrice a day he prayed formally” [6] (Spurgeon).
“And prayed, and gave thanks.”
And the fourth thing Daniel did was to pray and give thanks to Jehovah. We see this pattern taught to believers in many places in the Scriptures.
“I will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth” (Psalm 34:1).
“Be careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6).
“And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him” (Colossians 3:17).
“Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (1 Thessalonians 5:17-18).
“By Him, therefore, let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name” (Hebrews 13:15).
“Before his God, as he did aforetime.”
Daniel was not mistaken as to whom he was praying. It was only to Jehovah his God. No doubt he had seen the pitiful gods of the Babylonians and concluded that they were nothing. His God had directed his life and provided for him for more than 80 years. He will continue to pray to his God.
“As He Did Aforetime”
This is the key phrase to this passage. Daniel never quit believing in his God, and when times got hard, he continued on with the same trust and consistency he always had in his life with his God. It’s interesting to see that Daniel’s emergencies could not shake him, and neither could they change his behavior.
“Here is no concealment, no evasion, no smothering things, and hiding his religion, to comply with the times: but with his windows thrown open towards Jerusalem the holy city, with an eye to the temple, the well-known type of Christ, as if looking for His coming; three times a day, according to his usual custom, he presented his supplications before the throne” [7] (Hawker).
“Daniel prayed not out of rebellion toward the king but out of obedience to the greater command of God. As the apostles would later say, ‘We must obey God rather than people’ (Acts 5:29). So great was Daniel’s reputation for spiritual commitment that even his enemies knew he would obey God rather than bow to the king’s edict” [8] (CSB).
Dear Lord, please give us a heart of faith like Daniel had for you, that we too may be consistent in our devotion and love to you as we walk through our daily lives with you. Amen.
Quote: Daniel answered, “King, live forever! My God sent his angel to save me. The angel closed the lions’ mouths. The lions have not hurt me because my God knows I am innocent. I never did anything wrong to you, King. King Darius was very happy. He told his servants to lift Daniel out of the lions’ den. And when Daniel was lifted out of the den, they did not find any injury on his body. The lions did not hurt Daniel because he trusted in his God” (Daniel 6:21-23, HSB).
[1] HSB is the Harvest Study Bible from Harvest Ministries in Guam.
[2] Heslop’s quote is from EWC – David Guzik. Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword.
[3] JFB, Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 1, pp. 631–632). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
[4] BKC, Pentecost, J. D. (1985). Daniel. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1348). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. The emphasis is theirs.
[5] JFB, ibid.
[6] Spurgeon’s quote is from EWC, ibid.
[7] PMC – The Poor Man’s Commentary, Robert Hawker, the electronic version in eSword.
[8] CSB, Rydelnik, M. (2017). Daniel. In E. A. Blum & T. Wax (Eds.), CSB Study Bible: Notes (p. 1336). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.