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Day 3 Daniel 3 Daniel 3:1 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof six cubits: he set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. 2 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent to gather together the princes, the governors, and the captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to come to the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. 3 Then the princes, the governors, and captains, the judges, the treasurers, the counsellors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together unto the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up; and they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 4 Then a herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, 5 That at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up: 6 And whoso falls not down and worships shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 7 Therefore at that time, when all the people heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and all kinds of music, all the people, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshipped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. 8 Wherefore at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and accused the Jews. 9 They spoke and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live forever. 10 Thou, O king, hast made a decree, that every man that shall hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image: 11 And whoso falls not down and worships, that he should be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 12 There are certain Jews whom thou hast set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego; these men, O king, have not regarded thee: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. 13 Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? 15 Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of music, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. 17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. 19 Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: therefore he spoke, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated. 20 And he commanded the most mighty men that were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their hosen, and their hats, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 22 Therefore because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spoke, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king. 25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. 26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spoke, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the Most-High God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire. 27 And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king’s counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them. 28 Then Nebuchadnezzar spoke, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king’s word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. 29 Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. 30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of Babylon. People like challenges, even foolish challenges they call dares, to make another person do something that could potentially hurt or kill them. King Nebuchadnezzar built an image of gold, perhaps fashioned after the one of his dream, made to look like him, being all gold, and commanded everyone worship the image, and if they didn’t they would be cast into the fire. Three men dared to defy King Nebuchadnezzar, and refused to bow. When told directly by the king that they should obey him and bow to the image, they defied him and dared tell the king they would only bow to their God and none other. No one talks to the king the way those three men did. It was a dare they were willing to take, even if it meant their life. Though everyone knows these three men as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. I would remind you of their real names – Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, servants of the Most-High God, who refused to bow to the image and insisted on standing for their God. Furious with their reply, King Nebuchadnezzar had the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and had them tossed into the fire. When he did, he was astonished to see, not three men, but four walking in the fire unhurt, and his testimony was that the fourth looked like the Son of God. As Christians, you know the fourth man in the fire, was Jesus, the pre-incarnate Son of God. It was he who kept Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah safe from the fire because they refused to submit to any other god beside their true God and Father. When King Nebuchadnezzar had them tossed into the fire, only the men who tossed them in were killed by the fire. God will protect you from those who intend harm against you. God’s protection can also make believers out of non-believers. King Nebuchadnezzar declared that the God of Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah was the Most-High God and everyone should respect their God and anyone who didn’t would die and their homes destroyed. As Christians, have you stood by your faith when faced with a challenge to go along with the world? Have you told the person who wanted you to do something against your faith that you would never do as requested? Missionaries and Christians around the world face persecution and death every day because they refuse to submit to the ways of the world and denounce Jesus as their Savior and Lord. They are willing to die for their faith, and many have, never wavering from the love of God. Their reward is eternal life. Anything else this world offers pales into insignificance to what God has waiting for them. Is your faith in Jesus Christ strong enough to die for? Those three men who faced the fiery furnace, was, and they reaped rewards far greater than they expected because they stood their ground and refused to bow to any other god. Let’s pray: Father, give me faith strong enough to die for. Believing in and relying on you no matter what the world would have me do. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen. Copyright © 5 February 2018 by Valerie Routhieaux Image courtesy of Pixabay