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.

The measurement of a cubit is somewhat subjective in Daniels era. A cubit is considered to be the length of a mans arm from elbow to the fingertips. Even contemporary considerations place the cubit between 18 – 21 inches. One would want to truly consider the height of your carpenter when considering a project. A footstool made by a 5 ft man verses a 7 foot man could have implications to you level of comfort. I want the 7 footer building my walls otherwise my house may look like a mini barn. At 18 inches this statue is 90 ft tall!

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.

Nothing like getting all your friends together and showing off… hey kids look what I did… except reality dictates that he more than like had this work commissioned. Based on his previous activity I would assume that the lives of the artist were at stake as well.

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 an 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 musick, ye fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king hath set up:

• Exodus 20:3 “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.”
• Deuteronomy 6:14 “Ye shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you;”
• Deuteronomy 17:3 “And hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded;”

6 And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth 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, (triangle) psaltery,(lyre) and all kinds of musick, 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.

This does not directly refer to just Daniel and the 3 young men. It is entirely possible that ALL the Hebrews in this group stood against the command of the king.

9 They spake 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 musick, shall fall down and worship the golden image:

11 And whoso falleth not down and worshippeth, 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.

Again there remains a real possibility that more than just these few were involved and our writer may be focused on those immediately in his care.

14 Nebuchadnezzar spake 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 musick, 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?

Here is where Nebuchadnezzar forgets the previous miracle and taunts the Hebrews. Curious… you think the band was play a BTO cover of “You aint seen nothin yet”?

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.

How would these three young men know this? Where would they gain this confidence. Has it happened before?

• Jasher 12:1-6 “And when the king heard the words of Abram he ordered him to be put into prison; and Abram was ten days in prison. And at the end of those days the king ordered that all the kings, princes and governors of different provinces and the sages should come before him, and they sat before him, and Abram was still in the house of confinement. And the king said to the princes and sages, Have you heard what Abram, the son of Terah, has done to his father? Thus has he done to him, and I ordered him to be brought before me, and thus has he spoken; his heart did not misgive him, neither did he stir in my presence, and behold now he is confined in the prison. And therefore decide what judgment is due to this man who reviled the king; who spoke and did all the things that you heard. And they all answered the king saying, The man who revileth the king should be hanged upon a tree; but having done all the things that he said, and having despised our gods, he must therefore be burned to death, for this is the law in this matter. If it pleaseth the king to do this, let him order his servants to kindle a fire both night and day in thy brick furnace, and then we will cast this man into it. And the king did so, and he commanded his servants that they should prepare a fire for three days and three nights in the king’s furnace, that is in Casdim; and the king ordered them to take Abram from prison and bring him out to be burned.”
• Jasher 12:21-26 “And they brought them both, Abram and Haran his brother, to cast them into the fire; and all the inhabitants of the land and the king’s servants and princes and all the women and little ones were there, standing that day over them. And the king’s servants took Abram and his brother, and they stripped them of all their clothes excepting their lower garments which were upon them. And they bound their hands and feet with linen cords, and the servants of the king lifted them up and cast them both into the furnace. And the Lord loved Abram and he had compassion over him, and the Lord came down and delivered Abram from the fire and he was not burned. But all the cords with which they bound him were burned, while Abram remained and walked about in the fire. And Haran died when they had cast him into the fire, and he was burned to ashes, for his heart was not perfect with the Lord; and those men who cast him into the fire, the flame of the fire spread over them, and they were burned, and twelve men of them died.”

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.

Look at the passion… look at the faith of these men… ‘Even if he dont I would rather die in his favor than in yours.’

19 Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: (Scowl) therefore he spake, 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.

The king was SO mad that he was going to rid himself of the people and all their possessions! Funny thing… God does the exact same thing to the “workers of iniquity” in Revelation.

• Job 31:3 “Is not destruction to the wicked? and a strange punishment to the workers of iniquity?”
• Proverbs 10:29 “The way of the Lord is strength to the upright: but destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity.”
• Leviticus 5:17 “If anyone sins, doing any of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done, though he did not know it, then realizes his guilt, he shall bear his iniquity.”
• Romans 6:16 “Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?”
• Revelation 20:14 “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.”

22 Therefore because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flames 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 astonished, and rose up in haste, and spake, 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.

Hebrews 13:5 “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

Sometimes you just gotta build a boat! The once famous and now ridiculed Bill Cosby performed a comedy sketch about Noah and his collection of the animals. And, we have seen the theatre produce both documentary and mockery of Noah’s calling. My favorite depiction is in Evan Almighty where the animals simply show up acting as if they and Evan are long lost friends. Almost seems legit.

No matter the circumstance we need to understand our “calling” well enough
that when the request comes… we build a boat!

• Genesis 22:1 “And it came to pass after these things, that God did test Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am.”
• Genesis 46:2 “And God spake unto Israel in the visions of the night, and said, Jacob, Jacob. And he said, Here am I.”
• Exodus 3:4 “And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.”
• 1 Samuel 3:4 “That the Lord called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.”
• Isaiah 6:8 “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.”
• Acts 9:10 “And there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias; and to him said the Lord in a vision, Ananias. And he said, Behold, I am here, Lord.”

26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, 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. (not even the smell of smoke)

28 Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, 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 any thing 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.