This worked out well for everyone. Everyone except the group of non-immigrants surrounding him that were extremely jealous. They did not appreciate this man and conspired to do away with him.
How could they get rid of this man? He was so righteous. He always did the right thing. He even prayed aloud, as they observed when they walked by his house with the windows open at different times of the day.
They finally came up with a plot that would permanently get rid of him without jeopardizing themselves. They realized they could use his strength, his righteousness, against him. They would get the government leader to pass a law against prayer to anyone but the leader himself. The penalty would be to be tossed into a pit of hungry, wild animals, which would surely result in death.
When this news reached this man about this new law he had a decision to make. Would he now pray to a man instead of his God? Would he start praying secretly or stop altogether? No, he knew exactly what he would do. He never flaunted his faith but he never shrank from it either. He would continue to do what he had always done.
Within days he was heard breaking the law and was turned in. He was taken into the presence of the Leader and interrogated. He confessed and was quickly sentenced. He was to be thrown into the pit of wild animals that very night.
This troubled the leader greatly and he secretly hoped that his friend would somehow survive the night. He could hardly sleep and at sunrise he immediately headed to the pit. He could hardly wait to discover the outcome. As he entered the pit from above he shouted, “My friend, my friend, did your God save you from certain death?”
Arising from amidst the sleepy lions, “ Yes my friend, my faith has surely saved me, “ responded Daniel.