Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king, and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever.7 All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counsellors, and the captains, 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, save 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 altereth not.
9 Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree.
10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
11 Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God.
12 Then they came near, and spake before the king concerning the king's decree; Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that shall ask a petition of any God or man within thirty days, save 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 altereth not.
13 Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, which 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 displeased with himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him: and he laboured till the going down of the sun to deliver him.
15 Then these men assembled unto the king, and said unto the king, Know, O king, that the law of the Medes and Persians is, That no decree nor statute which the king establisheth may be changed.
16 Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, Thy God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.
17 And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his lords; that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel.
18 Then the king went to his palace, and passed the night fasting: neither were instruments of musick brought before him: and his sleep went from him.
--Daniel 6:6-18
Thus it was that when Daniel was shut in the lion pit by the king's orders, God sent him his dinner, and the hungry beasts left the man of God alone and let him take his food. So, too, Elias was fed on his flight, in his seclusion and in time of persecution; he was served by ravens, his food brought by birds. Yes, wild birds can keep their distance; birds can wait at table, but the human will is so horribly cruel that people are always on the prowl, always ready to pounce on their prey.
--Cyprian of Carthage, Third century
Real leadership begins not with a "hard-nosed plan" or a "can-do attitude," but with what the ancient Chinese philosopher Chuang Tzu called "the fasting of the heart." The phrase appears in one of Chuang Tzu's stories, which describes a discussion between the great teacher Confucius and his eager young student Yen Hui. Yen Hui had come to Confucius with a plan to reform the government of a Chinese province whose leader was overwhelmingly self-serving and blind to his people's needs. In a torment of well-intentioned verbiage, Yen Hui explains to Confucius how he will reform the province through a program of enlightened, blameless leadership. Confucius, instead of approving the youngster's enthusiasm, tells Yen Hui he must learn to let go of all his plans--to fast in the heart--before he can find the wisdom needed to be of service to the people.
"Fasting of the heart frees you from limitation and from preoccupation. Fasting of the heart begets unity and freedom .... Look at this window: it is nothing but a hole in the wall, but because of it the whole room is full of light. So when the faculties are empty, the heart is full of light. Being full of light, it becomes an influence by which others are secretly transformed."
This letting go, this fasting of the heart, is perhaps what Jesus had in mind when he said "The eye is the lamp of the body."
--Nathan Mitchell
5 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
6 And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.
8 And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.
9 And he took thereof in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the lion.
12 And Samson said unto them, I will now put forth a riddle unto you: if ye can certainly declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty sheets and thirty change of garments:
13 But if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty sheets and thirty change of garments. And they said unto him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.
14 And he said unto them, Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not in three days expound the riddle.
Judges 14, selected verses
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