Rachel Workman: 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.” He has one
thing correct. No other god can save us the way Christ can.
30 Then
the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
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John Burnett:
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.” Sin
has a way of making people crazy like King Nebuchadnezzar. At the beginning
of this scene, he is threatening to kill people for not bowing down to his
oversized academy award statue and now he is praising the one and only God who
is worthy of praise. You would think that King Nebbie would have the
picture of who God is by now but not yet.
30 Then
the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of
Babylon. God often puts us in situations that are hard and puts our faith to
the test. He often blesses us beyond even what we can imagine when we
stand fast and continue to put our trust in Him. We have to remember that
when we put our trust in Him, we belong to Him because He bought us with His
blood. He will provide for us, just like we provide for our
children. He just does it perfectly.
As I
was looking for some information on the Three Amigos, I ran across this awesome
little gem of a website.
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Krista Cook: 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.”
- What
a drastic change of heart...but isn't that what the gospel does for the lost?
30 Then
the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
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Allen Michaels: 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. These young men had been completely untouched by the fire and
heat. Only the rope that bound them had been burned. No human can bind us if
God wants us to be free. The power available to us today is the same power that
delivered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego and raised Christ from the dead
(Ephesians 1:18-20). Trust God in every situation. There are eternal reasons
for temporary trials; so be thankful that your destiny is in God’s hands, not
in human hands.
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. Now Nebuchadnezzar knew that the God of
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was the real God. The king now understood that
they did the right thing when they did not obey his command. 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.” I find it interesting that even after witnessing this
miracle, Nebuchadnezzar WAS NOT making a full commitment here to serve
the Hebrew’s God alone. Instead, he was acknowledging that God is powerful, and
he commanded his people not to speak against God. Nebuchadnezzar did not
tell the people to throw away all the other Gods and worship only the Hebrew’s
God, but simply to add this one to the list.
30 Then the king
promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon. Where was Daniel during this story? The Bible never says.
Whether Daniel was there or not, you can bet that he would not have worshiped
the image either, and that there would have been five in the fire that day.
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Tomorrow’s reading for Daniel 4:1-8
To the nations and peoples of every language, who live in all the
earth:
May you prosper greatly!
2 It is my
pleasure to tell you about the miraculous signs and wonders that the Most High
God has performed for me.
3 How great
are his signs,
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.
how mighty his wonders!
His kingdom is an eternal kingdom;
his dominion endures from generation to generation.
4 I,
Nebuchadnezzar, was at home in my palace, contented and prosperous. 5 I had a dream that made me afraid. As I was lying
in bed, the images and visions that passed through my mind terrified me.
6 So I commanded that
all the wise men of Babylon be brought before me to interpret the dream for me.
7 When the magicians,
enchanters, astrologers[b] and diviners came, I told them the dream,
but they could not interpret it for me. 8 Finally, Daniel came into my presence and I told
him the dream. (He is called Belteshazzar, after the name of my god, and the
spirit of the holy gods is in him.)
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