Daniel 6:19

"Then the king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions. And when he came near unto the den to Daniel, he cried with a lamentable voice; the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions? Then said Daniel unto the king, O king, live forever. My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, and they have not hurt me; forasmuch as before him innocence was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt. Then was the king exceeding glad, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he had trusted in his God."

THE KING FINDS DANIEL UNHURT THE NEXT MORNING

"Forasmuch as before him innocency was found ..." The innocency here is in no sense absolute; and as Jamieson noted, "Therefore this passage does not justify Rome's doctrine of works meriting salvation."[31]

"God hath sent his angel ..." (Daniel 6:22). Even in the current dispensation of God's grace, it is stated that angels are "ministering spirits, sent forth to do service for them that shall inherit salvation" (Hebrews 1:14). Serving the interests of God's people is thus one of seven different functions set forth in the Bible as performed by angels. All seven are: (1) in the general sense, as here; (2) to watch over little children (Matthew 18:10); (3) to bear away the souls of the righteous in death (Luke 16:22); (4) to execute the punitive judgments of God upon the incorrigibly wicked (Acts 12:23); (5) to aid providentially in bringing sinners to hear the gospel of Christ (Acts 8:3); (6) to excercise influence over human rulers and princes as in the case of Persia (Daniel 10:20); and (7) to hold open forever the "Word of God" until the dispensation is ended (Revelation 10).