Rachel Workman: 8 At this time some astrologers[b] came forward and denounced the Jews. 9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever! 10 Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, 11 and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. 12 But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”
13 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” It's easy to sit here and say I wouldn't worship a false god. But I wonder how many false gods’ I've already worshiped in my lifetime?
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John Burnett:
8 At
this time some astrologers[a] came forward and denounced the
Jews.9 They
said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever! 10 Your Majesty has issued a
decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre,
harp, pipe and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of
gold, 11 and
that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing
furnace. 12 But
there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of
Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your
Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have
set up.”
13 Furious with
rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were
brought before the king, 14 and
Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that
you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set
up? 15 Now
when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all
kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made,
very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a
blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my
hand?” The last line of this passage has to be one of the most rhetorical questions
ever asked. Daniel had interpreted his vision for him but due to his
rage, King Nebuchadnezzar could rationally come to the conclusion that
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego worshiped the same God as Daniel.
Persecution of the Jews and Christians is nothing new and it goes on today,
just like it was going on in this passage. God promises he will never put
into situations that we cannot handle when we put our trust fully in Him.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had to put their trust fully in God. The
only God able to rescue you from the hand of an enemy.
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13 Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”
-
Time to sink or stand. We know how the story ends, but how would your
story end?
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Allen Michaels: 8 At this time some astrologers came forward and denounced the
Jews. 9 They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live
forever! 10 Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who
hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of
music must fall down and worship the image of gold, 11 and that
whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. 12 But
there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of
Babylon—Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego—who pay no attention to you, Your
Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have
set up.”
There were three men who
did not obey the king’s command. They were loyal to the king. But they refused
to give honour to the image, because they gave honour to the real God. They
knew that God’s people must not give honour to images or other gods. (See
Exodus 20:1-5.) These men were Daniel’s friends, Shadrach, Meshach and
Abednego. The king did not know that these men had not obeyed his command. But
some of his wise men told him. Daniel and his friends had saved the lives of
these wise men (Daniel 2:24). But Daniel’s friends were now more important than
these wise men were (Daniel 2:49). So these wise men were jealous.
13 Furious with rage,
Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were
brought before the king, Pride had caused
Nebuchadnezzar to go beyond his own authority. His demands were unjust and his
reactions extreme. I often find myself angered when people don’t follow my
instructions or directions. That’s when I need to ask myself, “Why am I
reacting in this way.” Usually it’s because I am right and I know what I’m
talking about. But there are times that my ego may be getting overly involved
with my authority. 14 and Nebuchadnezzar said to
them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my
gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? 15 Now when
you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds
of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very
good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a
blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?” These three men could have used a number of excuses to bow to
the image and save their lives. They could have only acted like they
were worshiping, they could have said they were only following the customs of
the land; they could have worshiped and immediately asked God for forgiveness;
there are many more things they could have done to avoid death. In our minds
these excuses may sound sensible at first being that death is involved. But
they are actually dangerous rationalizations. To fall down and worship the
image would violate God’s command that’s given in Exodus 20:3, “You shall have no other gods before me.” It would also erase their testimony for God forever. Never
again could they talk about the power of their God above all other gods. What
excuses do we use for not standing up for God or Jesus the Christ?
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There is no reading Friday. Monday's reading for Daniel 3:16-26
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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