Now in that place there was a great dragon, which the Babylonians revered. The king said to Daniel, “You cannot deny that this is a living god; so worship him.”  Daniel said, “I worship the Lord my God, for he is the living God.  But give me permission, O king, and I will kill the dragon without sword or club.”  The king said, “I give you permission.”

            Then Daniel took pitch, fat, and hair, and boiled them together and made cakes, which he fed to the dragon.  The dragon ate them, and burst open.  Then Daniel said, “See what you have been worshiping!”

            When the Babylonians heard about it, they were very indignant and conspired against the king, saying, “The king has become a Jew; he has destroyed Bel, and killed the dragon, and slaughtered the priests.”  Going to the king, they said, “Hand Daniel over to us, or else we will kill you and your household.”  The king saw that they were pressing him hard, and under compulsion he handed Daniel over to them.

            They threw Daniel into the lions’ den, and he was there for six days.  There were seven lions in the den, and every day they had been given two human bodies and two sheep; but now they were given nothing, so that they would devour Daniel.

            Now the prophet Habakkuk was in Judea; he had made a stew and had broken bread into a bowl, and was going into the field to take it to the reapers.  But the angel of the Lord said to Habakkuk, “Take the food that you have to Babylon, to Daniel, in the lions’ den.”  Habakkuk said “Sir, I have never seen Babylon, and I know nothing about the den.”  Then the angel of the Lord took him by the crown of his head and carried him by his hair; with the speed of the wind he set him down in Babylon, right over the den.

            Then Habakkuk shouted, “Daniel, Daniel!  Take the food that God has sent you.”  Daniel said, “You have remembered me, O God, and have not forsake those who love you.”  So Daniel got up and ate. And the angel of God immediately returned Habakkuk to his own place.

            On the seventh day the king came to mourn for Daniel.  When he came to the den he looked in, and there sat Daniel!  The king shouted with a loud voice, “You are great, O Lord, the God of Daniel, and there is no other besides you!”  Then he pulled Daniel out, and threw into the den those who had attempted his destruction, and they were instantly eaten before his eyes.

Compare “you cannot deny that this is a living god” with “I worship the living God.”  Note also that false gods are destroyed by the very things they consume.  The false gods of money, power, greed and so forth are never satisfied.  If fed more and more they are not only destroyed but destroy the worshipper.  If they are fed real food they disappear like the illusions they are.

More importantly, Daniel is told to “take the food that God has sent you.”  Our work has barely begun when we destroy the idols we have created.  We must then feed ourselves continually on the food that God has provided, that is, the Word.  We require sustenance throughout life, and if we do not feed ourselves with God’s food, we invariably find ourselves fashioning other means of sustenance.

Elijah was discouraged, weak and alone in the wilderness.  He wanted to die, yet there was much in his life yet to be done.  An angel was sent to him, telling him “Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.” (1 Kings 19.7)  Even so, every day we must get up and take the food God has provided for us in His Word.  How else can we make the journey in safety?  Do we not see the lions around us?

Prayer-

Lord God, grant us the strength and constancy to seek out your food each day.  You promise to feed us, O Lord, but we must stand up and take it – you cannot do that for us.  Help us to always flee despondency and every other enemy of the faith.  Amen.