Daniel 6:3

3 Daniel did a better job than the other two leaders or any of the royal rulers. He was an unusually good and able man. So the king planned to put him in charge of the whole kingdom.

Daniel 6:3 Meaning and Commentary

Daniel 6:3

Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and
princes
Not only above the princes, but the presidents, being the first of them, as before: or, "he was victorious above them" ^F25; he got more credit and applause than they did, being more exact, diligent, and laborious, faithful, and conscientious: because an excellent spirit was in him;
meaning not a spirit of grace, piety, and religion, which the Heathen king was no judge of, nor valued him for it, though it was in him; but a spirit of knowledge of civil affairs, and of prudence in managing them, and of integrity throughout the whole of his conduct: and the king thought to set him over the whole realm;
or, "wherefore the king thought" ^F26; because there was such a spirit in him, which so qualified him for public business, he began to think of abolishing his triumvirate of presidents, and making Daniel his viceroy over the whole empire, which very probably they had got some knowledge of; and this, as well as being above them, drew the envy of them on him, and put them upon the following scheme.

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FOOTNOTES:

F25 (xuntm) "victorem se gerebat", Piscator, Michaelis.
F26 (aklmw) "ideo rex", Gejerus, Michaelis.

Daniel 6:3 In-Context

1 It pleased Darius to appoint 120 royal rulers over his entire kingdom.

2 He placed three leaders over them. One of the leaders was Daniel. The royal rulers were made accountable to the three leaders. Then the king wouldn't lose any of his wealth.

3 Daniel did a better job than the other two leaders or any of the royal rulers. He was an unusually good and able man. So the king planned to put him in charge of the whole kingdom.

4 But the other two leaders and the royal rulers heard about it. So they looked for a reason to bring charges against Daniel. They tried to find something wrong with the way he ran the government. But they weren't able to. They couldn't find any fault with his work. He could always be trusted. He never did anything wrong. And he always did what he was supposed to.

5 Finally those men said, "It's almost impossible for us to come up with a reason to bring charges against this man Daniel. If we do, it will have to be in connection with the law of his God."