6-30-10

DANIEL 3

Most of us, and especially children, know the story of the three men in the fiery furnace. Quite an easy read, and the lessons are pretty straightforward. So let’s dig a bit past the main story and find a couple “not-so-clear” answers to questions that might have come up. Then again, the main story is what God wanted to tell us, more character on display.

If the standard “cubit” is around 18 inches, then the statue built by King Nebuchadnezzar was 9 feet wide by 90 feet high. Serious structure! Basically, worship the idol when the music plays, and all will be well. Don’t, and get thrown into the fire.

Remember, the high-ranking officials of Babylon would have had to be a bit envious of these young men that came from Judah, and who were now serving Babylon in an official capacity. So when the three, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego fail to worship this false god, they are called on it by the officials, and brought before Nebuchadnezzar.

Metallurgy was practiced to a large degree in this time, though we tend to think of people 2500 years ago as primitive, uncivilized. On the contrary, they were able to build huge furnaces, kilns, etc. by digging into the sides of hills. The furnace here likely had an opening at the top and two sides, allowing great ventilation and introduction of oxygen to be able to super-heat metal.

We know the story, the king gives the men a second chance, they say forget it, we’ll never worship this or any of your gods, and into the fire they will go.

Nebuchadnezzar’s question in verse 15 is a great one: “What god can save you?” Now, he already has seen God work through Daniel with the dream, but this is such a potentially horrifying situation to endure, how can any power stop them from dying? And a great question deserves a great, divine answer. To summarize these three, “Our God can save us, and even if He does not, he is still God.” Yeah, that made the king pretty mad.

So they tie the men up, leaving their clothes on them (imagine the sight of clothes and then people catching fire this was the desired outcome). They were to be an example.

They super-heat the furnace, presumably by using big bellows to fuel the fire with more air, take the men to throw them in, the men taking them there die from the heat, and the three men are in the fire. Nebuchadnezzar looks in and instead of seeing three men, he sees four, and no one is burning. So out they come.

His comment in verse 25, where he states that the fourth man looks like “a son of the gods” is his way of stating that this is no ordinary man, but rather a divine being. And he proclaims from that day forth that no one is to speak ill of the God of these Hebrews. Granted, he does not credit God with being THE only God, yet he clearly recognizes Him and the faith of these men.

Questions:
So who is the fourth person in the fire? Could be an angel, could be an appearance of Christ. Since Nebuchadnezzar had no understanding of the Trinity, he could not have meant Christ, yet is certainly seems as though it was, even if unrecognized by the king.

So where was Daniel in all this? Likely on official business for Babylon nearby. The statue was set up locally, although very big, not necessarily for everyone in the whole kingdom to see and bow down to. His absence from the story does not mean that he bowed, nor does it discredit the account; that is, this is not some scriptural inconsistency.

SO WHAT…?

So, what God can save me from certain death? Well, God - capital “G” - has already done that spiritually through His Son. There is no other god that could do that.

So, can God intervene on a regular basis, saving me from a physical happening? Yes, He can, if he chooses to do so. If He does not, then He is still God.

So, I, too need courage to stand up to daily gods, daily temptations that would be easier to just go along with, as opposed to doing what God desires. Ultimately, he offers strength to endure whatever choosing Him will bring to my life.