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.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.	8 - Chaldeans ... Jews Ethnic hatred is not new.   10 - Thou, O king, hast made a decree They are not only flattering the king but being sure he doesn't find a way to change the plan.   In the case of the lion's den some years later, a scheme for killing Daniel was proposed to King Darius. Only the king was to be worshipped for a certain period. In his pride he signed the decree da0607 realizing too late that he had been deceived. It is reasonable to believe that Nebuchadnezzar had likewise been influenced by the men who reported the violation.   12 - Jews whom thou hast set Here is their motive. They wanted more power and were unhappy that Nebuchadnezzar had given these men responsible positions over them da0249.   Where was Daniel? I expect he was keeping order in the city. The Bible doesn't say.
13  Then Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury commanded to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Then they brought these men before the king.  14  Nebuchadnezzar spake and said unto them, Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, do not ye serve my gods, nor worship the golden image which I have set up? .15  Now if ye be ready that at what time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, and dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the image which I have made; well: but if ye worship not, ye shall be cast the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace; and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands?	13 - The three Hebrews had interfered with his pride. Their decision also threatened the loyalty of the other leaders across the realm. Nebuchadnezzar wanted to save these men. People who are are faithful to God are faithful in their duties, too. If only they would bow down! He had allowed pride to consume him mr0626. He would offer a second chance.   15 - Who is that God? He knew well the answer but wickedness is not rational. With the same defiance, the worldwide counterfeit religion will attempt to enforce worship of the image to the beast at the end of time re1315.
.16  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.  17  If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. .18  But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.	16 - Careful The Aramaic word means "need." Thus, "We don't need to answer you in this matter." The statement was, no doubt, with courtesy.    17,18 - The response is a model for our loyalty day by day. When a crisis comes, we will not need to hesitate. Verse 17 alone would have been presumption. Verse 18 alone would have failed to represent the glory of God and would have seemed disrespectful to the king.   God does not always deliver us physically, but He will always deliver us spiritually if we are determined to hold on to His strength is2705.
19 ¶ 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. --------------------------------------------------   19 - Visage was changed Like all religious oppression, requirements are accompanied by anger and hatred.   19 - Seven times Likely more in an effort to prevent intervention by the very strong Hebrew God than to increase the punishment. See his question at the end of v15.   21 - Bound in their coats Daniel has a reason to mention their clothes which we will soon see. "Hosen" is Old English for trousers or pants. My interlinear Bible shows the word "slippers." Either is correct. The purpose of the verse seems better served with "pants."
24  Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonied, and rose up in haste, and spake, and said unto his counsellors, Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? They answered and said unto the king, True, O king.  25  He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.	25 - Like the Son of God  The term may also be translated "like a son of the Gods." From the context we can see that the KJV is the correct choice v26 v28f.
26  Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire. .27  And the princes, governors, and captains, and the king's counsellors, being gathered together, saw these men, upon whose bodies the fire had no power, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.	27 - Fire had no power What a marvelous testimony! The glorified Christ shown to John may be seen to draw imagery from this experience re0115.
.28 ¶ Then Nebuchadnezzar spake, and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king's word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God.  29  Therefore I make a decree, That every people, nation, and language, which speak any thing amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill: because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort.  30  Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the province of Babylon..	Decree By the faithfulness of the three men, a knowledge, or an awareness, of the true God was spread through the whole world of Nebuchadnezzar.   Cut in pieces Nebuchadnezzar had not learned that the creator God is also a God of free choice re2217, jos2414f, mt0543f. Obedience to Him is from hearts of love. Jesus compared His professed people (the church) to a field where an enemy sowed weeds. The workers were not to remove the weeds but to wait for the angels to take care of them mt1336-43.

The image test is coming again
    Under the beast from the earth in Revelation, you and I may face the decision the three Hebrews faced. It won't likely be a literal burning fiery furnace, but it will be a challenge to be true to the God who saves us. We discuss this and have more to say about the situation in this Daniel chapter when discussing the threat from the image to the beast in Revelation. re1315.