📖 Biblical Definition
Several kings bear the name Darius in Scripture. Most prominent is Darius the Mede of Daniel 6, who took the kingdom after the fall of Belshazzar — a figure historians have variously identified with Cyrus, Cyaxares II, or Gubaru. He signed the foolish decree that put Daniel in the lions’ den, then was deeply troubled and could not sleep, and at dawn cried out: "Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?" (6:20). Daniel’s deliverance moved Darius to issue a kingdom-wide decree: "In every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and stedfast for ever" (6:26).
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
Darius — a Persian/Median king; especially the king who delivered Daniel from the lions.
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Daniel 6 portrays Darius as a king manipulated by jealous officials into signing an irrevocable decree forbidding prayer to any god but himself. He spent the night fasting after Daniel was thrown to the lions, hurried to the den at dawn, and on Daniel's deliverance issued an empire-wide proclamation honoring the LORD.
📖 Key Scripture
Daniel 6:9 — "Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree."
Daniel 6:16 — "Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee."
Daniel 6:25 — "Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages."
Daniel 6:26 — "He is the living God, and stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that... shall not be destroyed."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Confused with later Dariuses; the king's own faith-shift is missed.
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Darius the Mede is a pagan emperor who fasted in repentance for a decree he could not unmake. He learned the difference between his own irrevocable word and the irrevocable God of Daniel.
The proclamation he issued reads almost like a psalm: He is the living God, and steadfast for ever. A pagan court found its king preaching to the empire.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Old Persian Darayavaush — 'holding firm the good.'
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Usage
"Darius signed a decree he could not unsign; God wrote one over it that no man can unwrite."
"The pagan king fasted while the prophet slept among lions."
"When the empire's edict opens the den, the King of the den shuts the lions' mouths."