And so Daniel chapter 3, in a sense, is a tale of two sovereigns and a contest between them. And if you doubt that that is the point of the passage, look again at chapter 2 and verse 15, where King Nebuchadnezzar asks that important question that frames the chapter: “Who is the God who will deliver you out of my hands?” He recognized already that their refusal was due to their commitment to the Lord God of Israel, which in turn meant that they still believed Daniel’s prophecy—that it could come to pass that his kingdom would be taken from him and given to someone else. And now he responds by saying, “Well, God may have told you that, but we’ll see.”
So the scene is not simply one of pride, although it is that, and he’s condemned for his pride here; that pride is not the point of the passage. It is a scene of defiance. Who does this God think He is, and doesn’t He know who I am? It’s reminiscent of that famous line from Nietzsche, the philosopher: “If there is a God, how could I bear not to be that God?”
And so in verses 2 and following, he has this huge unveiling ceremony. Verse 5 talks about the orchestra several times over. We’re told about all of the instruments that will be playing at this great unveiling and the dedication of it. And all of the officials of all of the regions and all of the nations under his control were invited—we might say, invited—to come. The whole thing in verses 4 and 5 is very grandiose. All peoples and nations and languages are commanded to come and to bow and to worship. And again, the suggestion is: succession of kingdoms, nothing. This whole thing is mine, and all peoples and nations and languages will come and they’ll bow before me.
And he offers a little incentive in verse 6: the fiery furnace to eliminate the opposition. Archaeologists have uncovered furnaces like this in ancient Babylon. They were used for making bricks. Nebuchadnezzar was a tyrant. He had no qualms at all about throwing someone in the fire as a form of punishment. And in fact, it was evidently known of Nebuchadnezzar before this time because Jeremiah makes reference to it in Jeremiah chapter 29. Nebuchadnezzar would throw people into the fire. So this is a familiar form of punishment that Nebuchadnezzar had in Babylon. Of course, he was open to other forms of punishment as well. We saw that in chapter 2. We see it at the end of chapter 3. He could also tear people limb from limb and destroy their family and burn their house.
Well, in verse 7, then, finally, the music begins and everyone complies. And King Nebuchadnezzar is feeling very proud of himself. Now in verses 8 and following, for the first time in the book of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego become prominent. I’m not real sure how you want to pronounce those names. This isn’t Tom, Dick, and Harry—Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. We could work on the Aramaic translation, or you could do what my aunt does: “make the bed, shake the bed, and to bed we go.”
But these were men who had been given Jewish names, named after the Lord God of Israel, but they had been renamed, you remember, to be named after the gods of Babylon. The king had taken them, you remember, in chapter 1. That is where they’re introduced to us. They’ve been taken captive. They’re part of the nobility that had been brought into the palace precincts to be groomed and for work with the king. Later in chapter 1, you remember, they’re involved in that diet contest where they are faithful not to compromise their convictions, and God blessed that effort. We find later in chapter 1 again that they’re advanced in the royal court. In chapter 2 we find that they’re participating in a prayer meeting with Daniel. You remember when he prays for God to give the interpretation of the dream and to reveal the dream itself, and then to praise God for giving it as they had requested? They’re involved in that prayer meeting. And then at the very end of chapter 2, they are promoted at Daniel’s request to assist Daniel in the administrative affairs of Babylon.
So they’ve been in the background, and they’ve been mentioned at times throughout chapters 1 and 2. But now they’re put to the front of the narrative, and they’re prominent officials in the royal court defying the king’s command. Now in verse 8 we find the expression, “certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews.” Maliciously accused the Jews. Or you might have in your version, “brought charges against the Jews.” That is a very weak rendering of the Aramaic term here. And looking the word up in a standard Aramaic lexicon, the definition given is this: “eat the pieces of flesh torn off from someone’s body.” So it’s like a pulled pork barbecue; that is the idea what this word conveys.
Now obviously here in verse 8, that’s hyperbole or metaphoric of some kind, and that’s why we have it translated like we do: “they brought charges” or “maliciously accused the Jews.” But however you render it, it’s going to be a weak rendering of what the word means. And it’s a curious choice of words then. And you just wonder if Daniel is choosing this as some kind of a proleptic pun because these three guys are about to be, well, at least tempted to be barbecued. But the choice of the words is interesting in another way, and that is because if that’s the terminology used—if these guys came to pull the flesh off these guys and eat the meat, bring malicious charges against them—to use that kind of language is to suggest that there’s some kind of ulterior motives, some personal thing going on. They can’t wait to get rid of these guys. Maybe some office resentment. They’ve seen them being promoted and they want to get rid of them, get them out of the way. This is opportunity for self-promotion. Something like that is going on. And I think that might be reflected as well in verse 12. “There are certain Jews”—you can almost hear a sneer in that—”certain Jews that you’ve brought from Judea and they’ve rebelled.” If that’s what’s going on, that there is some of that opportunism going on, that would then in turn explain the king’s treatment of them at the end of it all.
Now one question that comes up here is in this whole scenario, where’s Daniel? And that question has been raised by many. And the answer is a very clear: we don’t know. There have been a lot of conjectures. I think—this is just a conjecture—I think the best guess is that he’s away. He’s not there. Surely he wouldn’t have bowed. He’s the one writing about it after all. And we know his faithfulness from chapter 6 in the lion’s den story and all the rest of it. So we know that he wouldn’t have bowed. Maybe he’s back in the palace taking care of affairs there. Maybe he’s away from the kingdom dealing with royal business somewhere. He’s not there.
Well, these charges are brought against these three: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. In verses 13 and following, the king is just in a rage over it. It is a personal insult. It’s an affront to his authority. They have refused to bow. They’re in defiance of him. They may, and evidently do, think that the prophecy of Daniel chapter 2 is going to stand. And so he’s in a rage over it. But for some reason, evidently his history with them in chapters 1 and 2, for some reason Nebuchadnezzar is a little hesitant to throw them in the fire. So he says, “Okay, here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to do it again. We’re going to play the music over again. And here’s what you’re supposed to do.” Like it wasn’t clear the first time. “But understand now, if you don’t, you’re going in the fire. And what God is there that can deliver you out of my hand?”
So he’s very serious about it. He really is rebelling with that question in verse 15. He really is rebelling against the prophecy of chapter 2. He’s trying to work this coming future history his own way with him at the top of it all. And he’s also thinking like a polytheist: it may well be that in among the gods of the pantheon of Babylon, he is superior. What would they be able to do to bring him down? Particularly understanding that they are just gods of wood and stone and metal. But from the perspective of monotheism, from the perspective of an Israelite believer and the God who created the world, this is both pathetic and it’s laughable.
And so in verses 16 through 18, we have the response of the three men. They said, “Look, we don’t need another chance. We’ve told you already, and you know the situation here. Understand, God is able to deliver, and He will. You asked who can do it? Our God can. Now if He chooses not to, and you are able to pull this off, that doesn’t change a thing. He is able nonetheless, whether He chooses to or not. But know that in either case, we will not bow.” Pardon the pun, they are unbending in their faithfulness to God. And that’s what Daniel is highlighting here. Their faith in God and their faithfulness to God; they will not budge. No compromise, no rationalization, none of this “well, you know, we can’t be a witness in the royal court if we’re dead, so, you know…”
Well, they had their speech, and then so in verse 19 and following, Nebuchadnezzar is so enraged, he has his own little speech, and he orders the furnace to be heated up, it says, seven times. Whether that expression means literally seven times hotter, or if it means just “you make this thing as hot as you can,” in either case, it was hot, and the attendants don’t seem to survive it. It doesn’t seem to bother Nebuchadnezzar; he can get more of them. There have been estimates of this. Perhaps the temperature was 900 degrees, 1,000 degrees—hot enough.
And so in verses 24 and 25, after they’re thrown into the fire, something very surprising, very unexpected happens. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are not dead. And in fact, there’s a fourth person in the fire. And it appears to be “a son of the gods,” Nebuchadnezzar says. Now, of course, there’s been all kinds of discussion and you’re waiting for me to give the answer. Who is the fourth person? And again, the answer is a clear: I don’t know. Verse 28, Nebuchadnezzar calls him an angel. Was this a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus? It might be. Is it some other figure who is a type of Jesus? It might be. Was it an angel? It might be. Whatever it is, it is very clear that this is a divine interruption of some kind. This is God stepping in with His preserving presence to take care of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the midst of the fire. And all the gathered, all the satraps and officials, came clamoring around to see and they’re impressed. The ropes have been burned off, but not their clothes, not even their hair, and they come out well.
Now, of course, one question that comes up is: is this really possible? In this modern world, are we supposed to believe that this kind of thing actually happened? Or is this some kind of an allegory, maybe? And of course the answer is: if you believe in Genesis chapter 1 and verse 1, then the rest of this is easy. If there’s a God who created the heavens and the earth, and He rules over the earth, well then this kind of thing is nothing. Floating axe heads are easy. Talking donkeys are easy. Virgin birth is easy. Once you get past Genesis chapter 1 and verse 1 and you see that there’s a God who made it all, who rules over it all, miracles are an easy question. Now we might want to have a discussion about how do you define a miracle? Is it an interruption of nature? Is it a violation of nature? Laws of nature? How do you say this in the right way? But the fact that it can happen is an easy enough thing to anyone who acknowledges that there’s a God in heaven.
Well, verses 26 and following, the king calls them in the fire. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are definitely more sanctified than I would be. I don’t know how I could not have said something like, “Hey, it’s not working, you might want to turn the heat up.” Well, verses 28 and following, the king is deeply impressed. He’s impressed with their resolve to follow this God at all costs—to follow, as he says, to yield up their bodies rather than compromise the worship of the true God. And he’s impressed not only with them, but he’s impressed with their God. And so he promotes them at the end of the chapter, and he makes a decree: no one will blaspheme this God. In fact, he places a curse, a decree that places a curse on anyone who does blaspheme this God. And that is the same curse that he offered for those advisors in chapter 2 if they could not tell the dream and interpret the dream. And that is, “we’ll tear you apart limb from limb and we’ll destroy your family and your whole house.” And so at the end of it, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, the faithful, are promoted and God is exalted.
Interesting, archaeologists have unearthed a clay prism from the time of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign. And there are five columns on the prism on each side, and in each column there’s a listing of some rulers that were subordinate rulers in Babylon that he was obviously honoring. Clearly the occasion—we don’t know the exact—but clearly it’s some kind of occasion that had showed them to be great, and he was now honoring them. And on this prism are three names: Hananu, Ardinabu, and Musallim, which appear to be alternate spellings of Hananiah or Shadrach, Abednego, and Meshach.
Fascinating story. But why is it here? What’s the point of it? Why did Daniel record it? Why did he record it in the first place for those exiles in Babylon? And then for us, why was this included in the canon? What is the message here for us? And I think the answer is that this highlights and illustrates for us on an individual level three themes—maybe more, but we’ll get to them in other chapters—but at least three themes that run through the book of Daniel. Themes that were important for his audience and themes that are important for us as well.
The Faithfulness Demanded Of God’s People
The first one, again, this just lies on the surface of the passage, is the faithfulness demanded of God’s people. Surely the point here in chapter 3 is not that if we are faithful, God will never allow us to be martyred. That’s not the point. Now God is able to intervene even supernaturally, even miraculously like He did here, but those miraculous interventions to stop those kinds of things are infrequent even in Scripture and certainly in the history of the church as well. The point is not that God will not allow you to be persecuted. The point seems to be that whatever the opposition, and in fact, whatever the consequences, God’s people must remain faithful.
That’s the point in verses 16 and following that Daniel emphasizes for us in the conversation that these three men had with the king. That’s the point that they make themselves: that God is able to deliver and He will, but even if He doesn’t, we won’t bow. Whatever the consequences, we will be faithful to our God. And in fact, that’s the conclusion that Nebuchadnezzar draws from it in verse 28 as well. He’s just astounded that these men would yield up their own bodies rather than worship any other God but the Lord God of heaven.
So they’re a model of faith and a model of faithfulness in serving God. Surely this is intended by Daniel to encourage his first readers in Babylon who are there in exile: don’t forget who you are. Don’t bow to these gods. Remember the Lord God who made us. Remember the Lord God who has made covenant promises to us. We are obliged to this God and we owe Him our loyalty. Don’t bow.
The whole idea of the exile, you remember from chapter 1, was to assimilate the people—bring them into your own land so they don’t have their own land to fight for. They’ll forget about their own gods, assimilate them into the people, become one of us, make them Babylonians. And we saw in chapter 2 that Daniel and these three men faced this challenge early on, a year and a half into the training period in the palace, and they proved to be faithful. They will not compromise. We find the same thing again now in chapter 3, the great test of faith here and test of faithfulness. We’ll see the same thing in chapter 6 with Daniel facing the lion’s den. We’ll see the same thing in chapters 8 and following where he foretells a coming great opposition against the people of God, which ultimately makes its reference to the Antichrist who will come to oppose the people of God.
And in all of that, the repeated message of Daniel is writing to encourage exiles in Babylon: stay faithful, be faithful to the God who has called us, don’t give in. Don’t assume that you have to fit in, but while you are in exile, don’t allow them to brainwash you. Don’t be taken in by it. Remain loyal to the God who has called us. And I say it’s the same in the canon of Scripture. We’re not in exile in Babylon, but there’s that clear note in the New Testament that we Christians are in a way in exile as well. Citizens of heaven, we’re here in this foreign world, this present evil world, and we are exiles also. And we must never forget who we are.
Nebuchadnezzar is not our opponent. But John does tell us that there are many antichrists already who are here. And this is the message then of Daniel 3, just like it was in chapter 1: that I have decided, I’ve determined, I’ve resolved to follow Jesus. The world behind me, the cross before me—no turning back. I’m here to follow Him. Remember the words of Christ that if we would love our lives, we must lose our lives for His sake. Remember the promise of Jesus to the church at Smyrna in Revelation chapter 2: “Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life.” First message, very obviously I think just on the face of it, is the demanded faithfulness of God’s people.
The Sovereign Rule Of God Over All Things
The second lesson, and again I think this is just right on the surface of it—the third lesson will be a little bit more subtle, but the second lesson I think is also right on the face of it—and that is the sovereignty of God over all things. Or if you want to state it more precisely, the sovereign rule of God over all things.
The whole context is that of the king’s defiance of God’s decree of chapter 2. As I’ve said, this is a tale of two sovereigns. Who’s going to rule? Does God really have the authority to say who will be king, who will be next, who will be next, which kingdom will give way to the next, to the next? Can He really, as He says, give the kingdom to someone else and then give the kingdom to someone else? Can God really do that? That’s the question at the center of the chapter. “Who is the God who will deliver you out of my hands?”
The passage then itself climaxes with this same note, where in verse 29 the king answers, “There is no God who is able to rescue in this way. There is no other God who is able to rescue in this way.” Daniel’s intent in writing to the people of God in exile is to say simply that despite appearances, God still reigns. He is well able to deliver; He’s well able to keep His promise and His purpose for His people Israel. God was not left behind defeated in Jerusalem. God still reigns, and He reigns over all the nations, and He reigns over all the affairs of men—even in a hot furnace.
And that is the grand theme of the book of Daniel. We see that in virtually every chapter running through the book of Daniel. In chapter 1, with the diet contest. Chapter 2, where it’s explicit in the prophecy that is made. Here in chapter 3, it’s highlighted again. Chapter 4, it’ll be the issue in focus—that God reigns over the nations. We’ll see it in chapter 5 with Belshazzar. We’ll see it in chapter 6 with the lion’s den. We’ll see it in chapter 7 with the prophecy of the succeeding nations again. We’ll see it in chapters 8 through 12 with the coming opponents. And all of that we see is emphasized over and over again: that God is God over the nations and rules over all of the affairs of men. He’s the God of heaven, but He’s God over the earth as well. And He rules.
And Daniel writes to emphasize this. And you can just—I think you can easily imagine those first readers as they hear of these events, this remarkable thing that these men are thrown into the fire as they defy Nebuchadnezzar, the great king. And they weren’t burned. And hope begins to rise. God is God over the nations. He wasn’t left behind in Israel. This God who made the world, this God who parted the Red Sea to give us our land, can yet accomplish His purpose and keep His promises. God blesses His faithful people. Let us trust Him. The ground of trust is that He is a sovereign God, able always to do all His will.
The Eventual Success Of The Kingdom Of God
I said three lessons: the faithfulness demanded of God’s people; number two, the sovereign rule of God over all things; and number three, this is a little bit more subtle, but I’m convinced it’s here: the eventual success of the kingdom of God.
There’s no direct prophecy in chapter 3. No prediction of things to come. No explicit mention of the kingdom of God to come. But I think this point is made in a few ways. One, in just the wonderful irony from the beginning to the end of the chapter. The chapter begins with the king’s decree to destroy all of those who do not bow to this image of him. And the chapter ends with a decree to destroy all of those who would dare to blaspheme Israel’s God.
You find it again: the chapter begins with a threat to the people of God who would be faithful. The chapter ends with their promotion and with the exaltation of God. And that kind of theme runs through much of the book of Daniel. We saw it in chapter 1, where these all four of them graduated at top of their class and they’re promoted. We find it in chapter 2, where Daniel and the three at the end of the chapter are honored and given promotion. We find that again here at the end of chapter 3. We find it again in chapter 5, where Daniel, giving this prophecy to Belshazzar concerning his coming demise, is honored and promoted. We find it again in chapter 6 where Daniel is rescued from the lion’s den. His accusers are destroyed. There’s this public recognition of the uniqueness of God and the uniqueness of His rule. There’s a call to worship God and Daniel prospers.
There’s a lot of that in the book of Daniel—that the ones under persecution come out on top. The ones being persecuted come out on top. The ones being threatened come out on top. Now, surely the point there is not that whenever we are faithful, we will come out on top. But then again, on another level, that’s just the point, isn’t it? Those who are faithful will share in the kingdom of God. And I think what we have here is an individual glimpse of that eventual reality on the widest scale. Those who are faithful will share in the kingdom of God.
And this is why Daniel is so concerned to stress the sovereignty of God over all things—over individuals, over kings, over kingdoms, over everything. That was the point of chapter 2. We’ll see it again in other chapters that I’ve mentioned. The whole point of it is to say: nothing here and now can ever interfere with the sovereign purpose of God. Nothing will ever interfere with the success of His kingdom. The point of stressing the sovereignty of God in this book is to stress the inevitability of the success of His kingdom.
There are other subtle indications of this in chapter 3. And I want you to see the phrase in chapter 3, verses 4 and 5. “All peoples and nations and languages” are commanded to come and worship this image. It’s so grandiose. Everybody from all over the earth—all peoples and nations and languages—are commanded to bow and worship. That’s verses 4 and 5. Verse 7, we have the same thing: “All the peoples and nations and languages” fell down to worship the image.
It takes a bit of a turn, we’ll see, in chapter 4. Nebuchadnezzar writes to “all peoples and nations and languages” to tell them how he learned of the universal sovereignty of God. We find it again in chapter 6 where Darius issues a decree to “all peoples and nations and languages” to worship the God of heaven. We find it again in chapter 7, verses 13 and 14, where the Son of Man receives the kingdom so that “all peoples and nations and languages” will come and serve Him. And if you’ve read your Bible even once, you see where that is going. That language is picked up in Revelation chapter 4, chapter 5, chapter 7, chapter 10, chapter 17. In the consummated kingdom of God, all nations, peoples, and nations and tongues come universally to give homage to Jesus the King.
And then there’s one other. And I don’t think this is over-reading it. It’s even more subtle, but I think we have to see it. Jesus makes subtle reference to this event at one point in His preaching. In Matthew chapter 13, verse 42—I’ll hurry, we’ll not turn there, I’ll read it for you—Matthew chapter 13, verse 42, He says, “The Son of Man will send His angels and they will gather out of His kingdom all causes of sin and lawbreakers and”—and here’s the expression, right out of Daniel chapter 3 and verse 6—”and will throw them into the fiery furnace.” And then He adds in verse 43, “And then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” And that’s right out of Daniel chapter 12, verses 1 and 2.
In other words, it’s not the faithful—ultimately, it is not the faithful who are in danger of the fire. It’s Nebuchadnezzar and his ilk. Because Nebuchadnezzar, Antiochus, Nero, Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Hussein, Kim Jong-un—none of these murderous tyrants will reign forever. God Himself will reign forever and ever. His kingdom cannot fail. He rules our earth and heaven. The keys of death and hell are to our Jesus given. He sits at God’s right hand till all His foes submit and bow to His command and fall beneath His feet.
That’s the message of Daniel chapter 3. People of God in exile: “Rejoice, the Lord is King. Your Lord and King adore. Rejoice, give thanks and sing and triumph evermore.” It may seem that we’re in exile. It may seem at times that Antichrist himself has all the control and that he’s unchecked. But the kingdom belongs to our God, and He will reign forever and ever. Amen.
Let’s bow for prayer. Our Father, we praise You as the God who reigns over all. We praise You as the God whose purpose can never fail. We ask that You would give us the faith and the faithfulness of these three men. Challenge us by it. Help us to keep the end in view: that if we are faithful, we will reign with You. We look forward to that day when our Lord Jesus, who once came and died for us and established the kingdom, will come to bring it to its consummation. Keep us, Lord, faithful until then, we ask in His name. Amen.