1. It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom a hundred and twenty satraps, who should be in all the kingdom;
2. and over these, three presidents--of whom Daniel was one--to whom these satraps should render account, and that the king should suffer no loss.
3. Now this Daniel surpassed the presidents and the satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to appoint him over the whole realm.
4. Then the presidents and the satraps sought to find a pretext against Daniel with respect to the kingdom; but they could not find any pretext or fault; inasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.
5. Then said these men, We shall not find any pretext against this Daniel, unless we find it against him touching the law of his God
6. Then these presidents and satraps came in a body to the king, and said thus unto him: King Darius, live for ever!
7. All the presidents of the kingdom, the prefects, and the satraps, the counsellors, and the governors have consulted together to establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except of thee, O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions.
8. 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 may not be revoked.
9. Therefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree.
10. And when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and, his windows being open in his upper chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled on his knees three times a day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did aforetime.
11. But those men came in a body, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God
12. Then they came near, and spoke before the king concerning the king's decree: Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that shall ask anything of any god or man within thirty days, except of thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which may not be revoked.
13. Then they answered and said before the king, That Daniel, who is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day.
14. Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore distressed thereby, and set his heart on Daniel to save him; and he laboured till the going down of the sun to deliver him.