The Fiery Furnace

During the Babylonian Exile in the sixth century BC, King Nebuchadnezzar constructed an image of gold sixty cubits high and six cubits wide on the plain of Dura (Daniel 3:1). He issued a decree that when the sound of various musical instruments was heard, every person must fall down and worship the image. The text states that anyone who failed to do so would be immediately cast into a burning fiery furnace (Daniel 3:6). Certain Chaldeans informed the king that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego—the Babylonian names given to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah—refused to serve the king's gods or worship the golden image. The king, in a rage, summoned the men and offered them one final opportunity to comply, which they declined, stating their God was able to deliver them.

Nebuchadnezzar ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual and commanded strong men in his army to bind the three Jews. Because the king's command was urgent and the furnace was exceeding hot, the flames killed the men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (Daniel 3:22). The three men, still wearing their trousers, shirts, and turbans, fell bound into the burning fiery furnace. The text does not say how long they remained inside before the king noticed a change in the circumstances, nor does it record any dialogue between the three men while they were in the fire.

Nebuchadnezzar became astonished and rose up in haste, observing four men walking unbound and unharmed in the midst of the fire. He noted that the appearance of the fourth was like a son of the gods (Daniel 3:25). The king approached the mouth of the furnace and called for the servants of the Most High God to come out. When they emerged, the satraps, prefects, governors, and counselors gathered and saw that the fire had no power over their bodies. Their hair was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and the smell of fire had not even come upon them.