Nebuchadnezzar’s Golden Image
1 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was 90 feet and its width nine feet. He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. 2 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king sent for the local officials: the deputies and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, to gather them together for the dedication of the image which Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up. 3 And the local officials: the deputies and the governors, the judges, the treasurers, the counselors, the sheriffs, and all the rulers of the provinces, were gathered together for the dedication of the image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up, and they stood in front of the image.
4 The herald then cried aloud, “To you it is commanded, peoples, nations, and languages, 5 that whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and any kind of music, you must fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up. 6 Whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a blazing furnace the same hour.”
7 Therefore at that time, when all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and any kind of music, all the peoples, the nations, and the languages, fell down and worshiped the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar the king had set up.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego
8 Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came near and brought an accusation against the Jews. 9 They answered Nebuchadnezzar the king, “O king, live forever! 10 You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and any kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image, 11 and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into the middle of a blazing furnace. 12 There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, have not respected you. They do not serve your gods and do not worship the golden image which you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in a furious rage, commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought in. And these men were brought before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar answered them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you don’t serve my god or worship the golden image which I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready, whenever you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe, and any kind of music, to fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you don’t worship, you shall be cast the same hour into the middle of a blazing furnace. Who is the god that will deliver you from my hands?”
16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If this is so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the blazing furnace, and he will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18 But whether it is or not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image which you have set up.”
The Blazing Furnace
19 Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious, and his countenance towards Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego was changed. He spoke, and commanded them to heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. 20 He commanded certain men, the strongest in his army, to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the blazing furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their pants, their tunics, and their mantles, and their other clothes, and were cast into the middle of the blazing furnace. 22 Because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace extremely hot, the flames from the fire killed the men who had taken up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. 23 These three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell down, bound, into the middle of the blazing furnace.
24 Then Nebuchadnezzar the king was astonished and jumped to his feet. He spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound, into the middle of the fire?”
They answered the king, “It is true, O king.”
25 He answered, “Look, I see four men loose, walking in the middle of the fire, and they are unharmed. The appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
26 Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the blazing furnace. He spoke and said, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, you servants of the Most High God, come out and come here!”
Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the midst of the fire. 27 The local officials; the deputies and the governors, and the king’s counselors, being gathered together, saw these men, and that the fire had no effect on their bodies. The hair of their head was not singed. Their pants were not changed, and the smell of smoke was not on them.
28 Nebuchadnezzar spoke and said, “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel, and delivered his servants who trusted in him, and have defied the king’s command, and have yielded their bodies, that they might not serve or worship any god, except their own God. 29 Therefore I am making a decree, that every people, nation, and language, which speaks anything against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be turned to rubble, because there is no other god who is able to deliver like this.”
30 Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon.