A Young Man Who Refused to Do Wrong

 There are many interesting stories in the Bible which help us understand God, and how He wants us to live. One such story is about a man who refused to do what he knew was wrong (read Daniel 6:1-28).

There was a king by the name of Darius, who was convinced by some of his evil governors that no one in his kingdom should pray for 30 days, unless he prayed to the king. The king made a law—no one could pray, except to him, for a whole month.

But one of the king's most trusted servants was a man named Daniel, who believed in God and always tried to obey Him. Daniel knew it would be wrong to pray to the king; so, he prayed to God instead. In fact, he prayed to God three times a day—just as he had always done.

The evil governors saw Daniel, and told the king that Daniel had disobeyed the king's law. It made Darius sad, because he liked Daniel, but the law said Daniel must be thrown into a den of lions (a den is where lions make their home). So Daniel was thrown to the hungry lions.

During the night, Darius was unable to sleep. He was sad that Daniel had to be put in with the lions. Early the next morning, the king rushed to the lions' den, and called out to Daniel, to see if he was still alive.

And he was! Daniel spoke to King Darius and said, "My God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths, and they have not hurt me" (Daniel 6:22). The king was so happy! He told his servants to remove Daniel from the lions' den. But the king was angry at the evil men who had tricked him into making such a silly law, and for making him put Daniel in the lions' den. So King Darius took those men and their families and had them thrown to the lions. The Bible says these evil people were eaten by the same lions which God kept from eating Daniel.

Daniel is a good example for us to follow. He refused to do wrong, and he prayed to God, even though the law said he should not. God protected Daniel, and kept the lions from harming him. The lesson for us is that we should always do that which is right, even if someone tells us not to.

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