Daniel 3:19-30 Sermon

Today I hope to finish Daniel 3.  Last week we covered verses 1-18 and learned of Neb’s construction of an image and his decree that everyone should worship it.  We also saw SMA refuse this decree and today we will see the consequences of that refusal. Remember the chapter can be divided as follows:

1. The decree of worship, vs 1-7.
2. The accusation, vs 8-12.
3. The testimony,  vs 13-18.
4. The casting into the furnace, vs 19-23.
5. Their deliverance, vs 24-27.
6. Neb’s response, vs 28-30.

The Casting into the Furnace, vs 19-23.

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.

Vs 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 

Upon hearing the refusal of SMA to his decree, Neb becomes furious.  The text implies his anger had taken full control over him. He could not reason. This had happened before in 2:12 when he was enraged by his wise men, and here his impetuous nature again becomes evident.  Note his attitude changed. A better reading is that his countenance or appearance changed. The KJV says visage. In other words, his face contorted in anger, and so Neb orders the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than usual. This was a command to really fire up the furnace.  Interpreters assume this furnace was used for the smelting and construction of the statue hence it would be near the site of the idol.  Iron melts at 2200 degrees while gold melts at 1945 degrees. I do not know if the people running the furnace would know it was seven times hotter than before. But the point was to really heat it up.  What would have fired this furnace? Living in Babylon and over one of the greatest deposits of oil in the world, one could suppose the furnace was supplied with oil or coal, as wood could not reach the melting temperatures of the metals involved.

Vs 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. 

In verse 20, Neb commands some of his strongest soldiers to bind SMA.  The phrase strongest soldiers implies an elite contingent. Neb orders that SMA be bound and to throw them into the furnace. Perhaps Neb was afraid SMA would fight back so he has them bound.

Vs 21: So, these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans, and other clothes, were bound, and thrown into the blazing furnace. 

In verse 21 the soldiers bind SMA.  They are in their good clothes as they are at an official dedication ceremony. The soldiers do not undress them or put a hood over their eyes.  No, they are bound and then off to the furnace they go.

Vs 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,

In verse 22, we see the urgency and immediacy of the command. It is urgent. Now we see an odd thing.  As the soldiers approach the mouth of the furnace the heat is so intense it kills the soldiers, but SMA are untouched.

Vs 23: and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.

We see that though the soldiers died they were still able to push SMA into the furnace. The word fell implies this was probably a vertical furnace with an opening at both the top and bottom. 

Their Deliverance vs 24-27.

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!” So, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, ²⁷ and the satraps, prefects, governors, and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.

Vs 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.”

Neb had a seat some distance from the opening of the furnace, yet was able to see inside, and now his anger turns to astonishment as he peers inside.  He incredulously asks his advisers “weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”

Vs 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.”

In verse 25, Neb sees four men within the furnace.  The heat has burned off the ropes that bound the three men (they are unbound) without disturbing the rest of their clothes or skin (they are unhurt).   Additionally, there is now a fourth person with them whom Neb describes as a son of the gods. The word son is singular while the word gods is plural. This is a supernatural being and is best interpreted as an angel and not a theophany.

Vs 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!”

Neb now calls to SMA to come out of the furnace.  In 2:47 Neb called the God of Daniel the “God of gods, and the Lord of kings, and revealer of mysteries.”  Here Neb calls the three men “the servants of the Most High God.”  He acknowledges the god of Daniel and SMA as now being more powerful and greater than his Babylonian gods.

Vs 27: and the satraps, prefects, governors, and royal advisers crowded around them. They saw that the fire had not harmed their bodies, nor was a hair of their heads singed; their robes were not scorched, and there was no smell of fire on them.

SMA now come out of the furnace and Neb and his advisors and officials crowd around them. Note the four observations:

1. The fire had no effect on the bodies of the three men.
2. Their hair had not been singed.
3. Their clothes were not affected.
4. There was no smell of smoke on them. 

Fructenbaum notes in his commentary the survival of these three Jews is a symbol of the faithful remnant who will come through the tribulation period as noted in Is 43:1-3, But now, O Jacob, listen to the Lord who created you. O Israel, the one who formed you says, “Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. ² When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. ³ For I am the Lord, your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Neb’s response, vs 28-30.

Vs 28: Then Nebuchadnezzar said, “Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants! They trusted in him and defied the king’s command and were willing to give up their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.

Neb and his officials now had irrefutable truth that the God of SMA was greater than any Babylonian god.  Though Neb had conquered the Jewish people, their Jewish God had thwarted his plans for SMA’s execution and had delivered them from Neb’s power. Therefore, in vs 28, Neb praises the God of SMA who sent his angel and rescued his servants. He commends the three men for two things: first their faith in their God and second; their willingness to put this faith to the test by defying his command and be willing to die for their convictions.  Circumstances have a way of unmasking who we are and revealing character in our being.

Vs 29: Therefore I decree that the people of any nation or language who say anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego be cut into pieces and their houses be turned into piles of rubble, for no other god can save in this way.”

Neb now issues a new decree that stands in stark contrast to the one he issued in 3:4-6. In verse 15b Neb had given a challenge: then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand? In verse 28 Neb realizes his challenge had been answered.  This new decree uses the same language as the first: to every people, nation, and language under the authority of Neb. Note the decree protects the worship of the Jewish God within the empire but does not adopt it as the official religion.  

Vs 30: Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.

The word for promote is the Aramaic word tzelach, which literally means to prosper.  The idea here is both authority and wealth. The three men were willing to give up everything to serve God, including their lives, and instead end up being prospered.  From this point forward SMA are not mentioned again in the book of Daniel.

Conclusions.

1. We are to be aware of and resist idolatry: how do I know I have an idolatrous heart? Here is the definition: When something or someone means more to you than God does. It could be money, power, fame, a person. How do you diagnose it? For believers, the HS reveals it to us but here are three symptoms of having an idol.  1. You are continually thinking about it. It is an obsession.  2. You are making unwise plans on how to obtain it. 3. You feel entitled to the bitterness of not having it. Jesus faced the same temptation we do. See Mt 4:8-10: Again, the devil *took Him along to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; ⁹ and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and ^[c]worship me. Note what was offered:  Glory, power, honor, dominion, fame, wealth, all in exchange for worshipping Satan.  Jesus refused because the relationship he had with God the Father was more valuable, more precious, more meaningful than anything Satan had to offer.  Is it true of you?( see Jer 2:4-13 for a great description of the idolatry of Israel just prior to Neb’s invasion).  What to do if you look inside and see an idolatrous heart?  1)  Be honest and confess it. 2) Ask  God how this idol is deceiving you and stealing the contentment the Lord offers. 3) Ask how this idolatrous desire would look if it were in its proper place beneath a supreme desire for God himself. 4) pray as the apostle John did in 1 Jn 5:21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. 
2. In a secular culture, there will always be a conflict between inner conviction and outside pressure. SMA faced enormous pressure to capitulate. They did not. Why? They knew the God they served.  They had a relationship with Him, and that relationship meant more than their physical lives. God had saved them once –he may or may not do it again. But they trusted God would do right by them.  They trusted Him. Like our NT verse today: 1 P 4:19 Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God are to entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right.
3. Others may be jealous and resentful of our position and seek to do us in.  SMA fellow workers did them in.  They were jealous and petty—so much so they exposed them so they would die.  As Peter says, Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though something strange were happening to you; ¹³ but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that at the revelation of His glory you may also rejoice and be overjoyed. ¹⁴ If you are insulted ^[k]for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory, and of God, rests upon you.
4. In the presence of persecution, your faithfulness can be a powerful witness. Neb was astounded at the miracle God wrought, as were his officials who saw it.  No doubt the event went viral among all who attended. Look at what Neb does in 3:28-30: Nebuchadnezzar responded and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who has sent His angel and rescued His servants who put their trust in Him, ^[w]violating the king’s command, and surrendered their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God. ²⁹ Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or population of any language that speaks anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego shall be torn limb from limb and their houses made a rubbish heap, because there is no other god who is able to save in this way.” ³⁰ Then the king made Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego prosperous in the province of Babylon.
5. God will always preserve a remnant.  No matter how bad the persecution gets, God will always preserve a small constituency of faithful believers. He does it in every generation.