Rachel Workman: 16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us[c] from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” How many idols have I worshiped in my lifetime? More than I'd like to admit.
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual 20 and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22 The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
25 He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
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John Burnett:
16 Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need
to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If we are thrown into the blazing
furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will
deliver us[a] from
Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But
even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve
your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
19 Then
Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his
attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times
hotter than usual 20 and
commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So these men, wearing their
robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the
blazing furnace. 22 The
king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire
killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and these three men, firmly tied,
fell into the blazing furnace.
24 Then
King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers,
“Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
25 He
said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed,
and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
26 Nebuchadnezzar
then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
So Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the
fire, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego knew that only their God could
save. They put their trust fully in Him to save them and He did.
The same goes for us today. If we put our trust in Jesus Christ, we also
will be saved from the fiery pit, but not only will we be saved, we will be
rewarded because we will be seen has having Jesus Christ’s record on our
account. We will be co-heirs as adopted sons and daughters and will reign
with Jesus in the millennial kingdom.
God is in control and He kept the flames from burning
these young men for His Glory because He is the only One who is worthy.
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They had such great faith and resolve. They knew their decision was
right. They knew the One who deserved their worship.
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious
with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He
ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual 20 and
commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So
these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound
and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22 The king’s command was
so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the
soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and these
three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
25 He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”
26 Nebuchadnezzar then approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
-
Again we see Nebuchadnezzar acknowledging God. But will he remember Him
when the smoke settles?
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Allen Michaels: 16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we
do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. 17 If
we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us
from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. 18 But
even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve
your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were pressured to deny God,
but they chose to be faithful to him no matter what happened! They trusted God
to deliver them, but they were determined to be faithful regardless of their
consequences. If God always rescued those who were true to him, Christians
would not need faith. Their religion would be like an awesome insurance policy,
and there would be lines of selfish people ready to sign up. We should be
faithful to serve God whether he intervenes on our behalf or not. Our eternal
reward is worth any suffering we may have to endure first. These guys knew that
there was no guarantee that God would save them. But they also knew they would
have the Kingdom of God waiting for them if God chose not to intervene.
19 Then
Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his
attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter
than usual “His attitude toward them changed.” When we do something that offends non-Christians, their
attitude toward us often changes because they are basically selfish. Christians
should be different; they should still love those who offend them. 20 and
commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. 21 So
these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound
and thrown into the blazing furnace. 22 The king’s command was
so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the
soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 23 and
these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
Now Nebuchadnezzar was so angry that
he ordered his servants to make the fire even hotter. Very strong men threw
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego into the fire. The fire was so hot that it
killed the strong men. Nebuchadnezzar thought that he would never see Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego again. The fire would kill them very quickly. He was wrong
again.
24 Then King
Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t
there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”
They
replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”
25 He said, “Look! I
see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth
looks like a son of the gods.” It was obvious to
those watching that this fourth person was supernatural. We cannot be certain
who this fourth man was. It could have been an angel or a pre-incarnate
appearance of Christ. In either case, God sent a heavenly visitor to accompany
these faithful men during their time of great trial.
26 Nebuchadnezzar then
approached the opening of the blazing furnace and shouted, “Shadrach, Meshach
and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!” I find it interesting here that Nebuchadnezzar shouted “Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out! Come here!”
instead of demanding that all four figures come out. It seems to me that he
would have wanted to know who that fourth figure was. But, on the other hand,
he may have been afraid to find out who that fourth figure was.
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Tomorrow’s reading for Daniel 3:27-30
So
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, 27 and the
satraps, prefects, governors and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw
that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads
singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.
28 Then
Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego,
who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied
the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or
worship any god except their own God. 29 Therefore I decree
that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned
into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”
30 Then
the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
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