Daniel’s friends: “But if not—“
Introduction: Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon during Daniel’s youth, certainly did not lack a sense of ego or self-importance. In chapter 2, he made an impossible demand on Babylon’s wise men, instructing them to repeat the king’s dream and what it meant or else face the death penalty! Now in chapter 3, he’s made an image of gold and demanded every one of his various deputies (rulers, judges, etc.) bow down and worship that image. Daniel’s three friends were in that crowd, heard the command, and refused to bow down. To borrow a phrase from Sir Winston Churchill, this was their finest hour, because they honored the True and the Living God more than anything else.
1 The requirement: bow down and worship the image!
Text: Daniel 3:1-7, KJV: 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 counsellers, 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 counsellers, 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: 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, psaltery, 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.
After the events of chapter 2, when Daniel reviewed and explained Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, the king decided to do something special, one might say. He had acknowledged the God of Daniel as a God of gods and a Lord of kings (Dan. 2:47), he still appeared to worship the various “gods” of Babylon. There is no other record in Scripture where the king ever spoke to Daniel about Daniel’s God before this chapter.
And something special, the king absolutely did: he built an image or statue of gold, 60 “cubits” high and 6 cubits wide or across (3:1). Allowing for the cubit to be 18 inches, or one-half yard, the statue was 30 yards or 90 feet in height and 9 feet in breadth! Where the king got all that gold, and who he employed to make that statue, then erect it and keep it standing, is another of history’s mysteries, yet unsolved.
Then, on an appointed day, the king called for all his overseers (see verses 2-3), and Daniel’s three friends were included in this gathering. The king had promoted these men to positions of authority already in the province of Babylon (2:49), and were obedient to the king’s command to assemble. No problem so far.
But a problem did arise when a herald began to give the king’s commands. Implied in verse 4 is that there were people of various languages and people groups, so it may have taken some time to translate the herald’s instructions into other languages. As a contrast, Babel was the last place where every person spoke the same language—and God scrambled the languages, so that the plans of the leaders would never be completed. Now Nebuchadnezzar seems to be using the reverse of that process, using one man (the herald) and representatives (unknown and unlisted) to convert the commands in the Babylonian language into the dialect or “heart language”, perhaps, of each people group represented.
This was bad enough, being called to an area outside of Babylon (the plain of Dura is not known with certainty) and forced to worship a giant golden idol. These leaders must have really pondered just what they should do. How many of them worshiped the God of Israel is not known, and Daniel’s three friends may have been the only ones. Some may have been genuine believers, or God-fearers, but they decided to “go through the motions” in order to please the king (regardless of what the LORD would have said about this in Exodus 20, e.g.). Admittedly the concept of being burned to death while still alive is sobering.
But one of the worst things of all is the misuse of music. One wonders how much Adam and Eve knew about music, perhaps singing songs of various moods, genres, and the like both before and after the Fall. Cain and Abel might have used some form of music in their acts of worship but of course Genesis reveals nothing until the time of Jubal (Genesis 4:21). Moses said of Jubal that ”he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ”. Music was often used in Temple worship in Israel: David had several instruments built in order to aid in worship and at various times there were groups of singers (choirs?) who took part in worship. But music was also used in a bad sense, as was the case here. When the people heard the sounds of the music, they were all supposed to—required to—bow down and worship the king’s image.
Or else.
And yet there were some who did not obey this command.
2 The reply: we refuse to do this
Text, Daniel 3:8-13 (KJV): 8 Wherefore at that time certain Chaldeans came near, and accused the Jews. 9 They spake and said to the king Nebuchadnezzar, O king, live for ever. 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.
Not only were there three who did not bow down to the image (Daniel’s three friends), there were also some who noticed them! And, those who noticed these three still standing promptly reported this to the king. Naturally, the king became furious and demanded the three friends stand before him. In fact, these men were brought (forcibly?) to the king.
Nebuchadnezzar was in a rage that three of his personal staff had gone against his personal commands. But, at least at the first, he may have calmed down—a little. In verse 14, he asked them if it was true, had they in fact NOT bowed down to his image? The results were obvious: they had not, they had been spotted, and someone had reported this to the king himself. Was the king trying to shame the three Hebrews or embarrass them? How many other people were in listening distance, where they could hear this conversation?
Perhaps trying to appear gracious (!), the king gives them a second chance. In verse 15, he tells them that he’s going to strike up the band one more time, and they’ll have one more chance to worship the image, and if they do so, well, then, everything’s fine and we’ll have it wrapped up before you know it (or words to that effect). He also reminded them, again, that if they didn’t bow down and worship the image, the furnace was their fate and they would be burned to death inside that furnace—while they were still alive. He even asked a question that might have scared any person who was not a believer in the God of Israel, “What god could save you from that kind of fate (paraphrased)?”
That was a threat, no matter how one looks at it, and it seemed to Nebuchadnezzar that he had everything in his grasp. What person would really risk death, being burned to death in a furnace, for any reason?
There were three who did just that. They refused to bow down the first time, probably not saying a word to anyone. They now refused to do this the second time, even though they were standing in front of the king, perhaps the most powerful man in the world at the time, and they refused to comply with his demands. They replied with three brief sentences.
The first was “O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter” Careful, here, did not mean they didn’t take an analysis of the situation but more likely it meant they were not nervous or scared (“full of care”). Surely they were going to be respectful, but firm, in their reply, even though they did not say, “O king, live forever” which seemed to be the more or less standard greeting of a monarch in those days.
In the next sentence, they reminded the king that even though he might throw them into the furnace, the God they served was able to take them back out! And they had faith that the God of their fathers would do exactly that. Of course they did not demand God do this, nor did they put God to the test by leaping into the furnace themselves, or any other such thing. They simply stated, our God is able to deliver us from anything, anywhere, and that includes your burning, fiery furnace (paraphrased).
Then their last sentence demonstrates their resolute faith: they said, “BUT IF NOT”—meaning, even if our God does not deliver us out of the furnace, even though we are burned to death while still being alive, even though it may cost us everything, “WE WILL NOT worship your image!” Somewhere I’ve read of the British forces in France, during the early days of World War 2, who were forced to the seashore near Dunquerque. Food, weapons, and most everything was gone but as the story goes, when they were asked if they would surrender, they replied with these words, “But if not . .” which meant, no matter what, they would never surrender. Daniel’s friends refused to surrender to the king, the golden image, the appeals to their positions, or anything else. They had faith God would deliver:
“BUT IF NOT’,
They still had faith! They knew where they were going when their lives were over.
Reader, how about you? Where are you going when your life is over?
3 The results: another miracle occurred
Text, Daniel 3:19-23, KJV: Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: 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. 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.
Nebuchadnezzar may have been expecting any response besides the one he heard! When the three Hebrews stated, ‘do your worst, we trust God anyway”, verse 19 states his face was “changed” against these three men. Just how and how much his visage or facial expression changed is not stated definitely in the KJV but the original language would provide much additional information. At any rate, he was certainly furious, so much that he ordered the three Hebrews to be thrown into the “burning fiery furnace” immediately (verse 23). These men, even though they were part of the king’s personal staff, had no “due process” rights or anything else for protection. If they offended the king, the king could have ended their lives, and that is exactly what he set out to do. He ordered these men bound (where could they go, anyway?) and cast into the furnace. Interestingly, the king ordered it to be heated seen times hotter than usual. Just how hot the furnace became, in terms of temperature, no one may ever know because the only people close enough to feel the heat either died or walked out of it!
Not exactly humorous, but an interesting detail in verse 22 says that the furnace was so hot that the flame killed the men who took Daniel’s friends near the furnace to throw them into it. Verse 23 says these three “fell”, as if they had perhaps been dropped when the men died on their way to the furnace. The sad thing is that these men, perhaps some of the strongest men in Nebuchadnezzar’s army, felt worse flames than that when they opened their eyes in Hell.
Even though the soldiers literally felt the heat of the furnace, Daniel’s friends were in the thick of it, using a figure of speech. They had been cast, and then had somehow fallen or bounced into the furnace, and everybody must have thought “Well, that’s that”, or “serves them right for defying the king’s orders” or something like that. The king was probably congratulating himself for not only purging “rebels” or whatever else he might have called them, but also for having all the leaders and overseers right where he wanted them. They knew, and had seen, what would happen if they didn’t follow the king’s commands to the letter. All must have seemed to be sunshine and roses!
But something they never expected to happen was about to happen. Remember, the three Hebrews had expressed their faith in their God, that no matter what, they would remain faithful to Him. And even though they had been thrown in the furnace, they weren’t going to stay there!
Verse 24 says the king was astonished or perhaps amazed when he saw something that he didn’t expect to see. He asked his counselors, “Didn’t we throw three men, bound with ropes, into the middle of the fire (paraphrased)?” and that was true, the king had ordered that to be done and had even seen the Hebrews fall into the furnace. Just how long it was between the time they were cast into the furnace, and when the king saw this unusual event, is not known but it most likely wasn’t very long. But what was it that he saw in the furnace?
The counselors replied, “Yes, O king, we did see three men, bound, and cast into the fire (paraphrased)” Then the king exclaimed “I see FOUR men down there, they’re loose and walking around—they aren’t even bound—and the fourth man is like ’the son of God’”!
To digress for a moment, some translations render the last part of verse 25 as “a son of the gods”. How much Nebuchadnezzar would have known about the God of Israel is debatable but for him to realize that the True God had a Son might be a bit generous. Having said this, the king probably would have known about “demigods” or offspring of a deity and a human. Greek mythology alone had numerous examples of the “gods” having children with humans. At the very least, Nebuchadnezzar realized that there was another person or Person in that furnace besides the three he had had thrown into it. And the group of four was walking around in the midst of that furnace!
After he saw the four people in the furnace, the king came by, maybe to see for himself if there were indeed four people in that place. He asked them (commanded them?) “Come forth, and come hither!” What he was thinking is anybody’s guess. Did he truly expect anyone to walk out that furnace—alive?
Chances are, Nebuchadnezzar got the surprise of his life when he, and a lot of his deputies, saw Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego walk (!) out of the furnace. Verse 26 says they came forth “from the midst of the fire”—does this mean the flames were still hotter than usual? No matter, the three men walked out of that furnace with no damage to their bodies, or even their clothing, whatsoever! They didn’t even have any damage to their hair, and they didn’t even smell like smoke. In a word, these pagan rulers had just witnessed a miracle.
How much of an effect this had on the other rulers is not known, but it sure affected Nebuchadnezzar. The first thing he did was to praise the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (using their Babylonian names) for sending His angel to deliver the men from the furnace (implied). He noted they had “yielded their bodies (verse 28)” and remained true to their own God instead of worshiping any other god.
And the most radical thing the king did was to make a decree that if anybody, anywhere, in his kingdom who spoke “anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego” would face very severe punishment (verse 29). There couldn’t have been much more of a contrast: the king commanded his deputies to worship and idol, but just a relatively short time later, was praising a God Whom he had never really known before!
Conclusion
What a day that was! It started off with a command to worship a golden idol, and mandatory bowing when the music played, then ended with a miracle, when three men walked out of the fires of a furnace. Daniel’s friends “yielded their bodies”, not afraid of fire, threats, or anything else. They remained true to their God even though it meant certain death. Even so, they were willing to live for their faith and die for their faith.
You and I are facing, and will continue to face, persecution in any number of means or ways. It’s going to come, and the world will continue to hate believers (John 15:18-19) simply because we have chosen Christ instead of the system. Every believer has the choice to stand firm, or waver—it depends on any number of factors—yet the rewards for remaining faithful are worth it.
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV).
