King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, ninety feet high and nine feet wide, and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it.
Then the herald loudly proclaimed, "
This is what you are commanded to do, O peoples, nations and men of every language: As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace."
Therefore, as soon as they heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp and all kinds of music, all the peoples, nations and men of every language fell down and worshiped the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.
Nebuchadnezzar has only heard half of the message of his dream from chapter 2. He announces his superiority over all kingdoms by creating a giant monolith 60 cubits in height and 6 cubits in width and requiring that everyone bow to it. The famous Colossus of Rhodes was 70 cubits in height so 60 cubits is certainly extraordinary for that age. According to Baldwin, some statues from the ANE have a layer of gold over less expensive material so a feasible image might have been made of strong clay, stone or brick with a gold plating. (Isaiah 40:19 describes the process of creating an idol with a gold overlay.) Gleason Archer suggests that the image was not of Nebuchadnezzar but of Nebuchadnezzar's main god, Nebo (or Nabu), after which the king is named. If so, this is the king's attempt to make the empire worship his favorite god, adding Nebo to everyone's pantheon of gods.
The plain of Dura is unknown. Baldwin (p. 101) passes on Kraeling's suggestion that Dura may be an abbreviation for a longer name of a suburb of Babylon, thus explaining why it is easy for the leaders in the Babylonian empire to meet there.
Burning people to death in a furnace was particularly cruel but not unknown. Jeremiah 29:20-23 mentions two false prophets, Ahab and Zedekiah in Judah, who were executed by Nebuchadnezzar in this manner.
The Hebrew words for the various political officials in Babylon (satraps, prefects, ...) are rare and commentators attempt to trace the words and explain them. A similar exercise occurs with the various musical instruments. I won't attempt to report on those linguistic discussions, other than to note that Baldwin suggests that the repetition of the list of instruments in the musical fanfare (occurring four times!) may be intentionally satirical.
It is likely that most of the populace were not affected by the king's decree as the requirement focused on the political leaders of the country.
Daniel 3:8-12, Three dissenters
At this time some astrologers came forward and denounced the Jews. They said to King Nebuchadnezzar,
"O king, live forever! You have issued a decree, O king, that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who pay no attention to you, O king. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up."
The king's lead officials (literally "Chaldeans", translated "astrologers") are quick to point out that there are three Jews in leadership who are disregarding the requirement to bow down to the stature. Of course, the Jews, with their upbringing against the serious sin of idolatry, trained on the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4-9), refuse to bow down.
We don't know why Daniel is not in the list of dissenters. Gleason Archer gives a series of possible solutions, including the possibility that Daniel was away on a diplomatic errand or that he was ill. Archer argues that the absence of Daniel here adds to the validity of the account; a later editor would surely be tempted to add in our missing hero.
Daniel 3:13-15, Questioned
Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, and Nebuchadnezzar said to them,
"Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?"
Most likely Nebuchadnezzar was not restricting worship to just the image on the plain, but required this worship as indication of submission to his leadership. To resist worship of the image is to resist the king and the empire. Although angry, the king gives his officers a chance to recant.
Daniel 3:16-18, We only serve one God
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to the king,
"O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand, O king. But even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up."
The three Jews are committed to worshiping only the One God of the Covenant and so must refuse. Their response includes an "even if not..." clause that acknowledges that their decision could be fatal. Commentators indicate that the Hebrew is not clear as to what is in doubt. It is conceivable that the Jews recognize that their God might not exist or might not be able to stop Nebuchadnezzar. But most translators interpret the "even if not..." phrase as admitting doubt on whether their God intends to save them. Regardless, their humble admittance of doubt in the face of impending death is comforting, indeed encouraging, to me.
Daniel 3: 19-23, Seven times hotter
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 and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. 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, and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.
The king is shocked by what he sees as betrayal. He insists that the fire be made as hot as possible. (The expression "seven times hotter" is not literal, but a statement about the intensity of the furnace.) We are deep into the Iron Age now and the knowledge of enclosed furnaces, with a charcoal base and methods of forcing air into the fire, was well known (see this Wikipedia page on ferrous metallurgy.) The furnace here is heated as hot as it will go with copious charcoal and forced air. It would have had an opening in the top.
Some time ago I was burning trash in a burn barrel, with the fire fed by air coming in the bottom of the barrel. Once the fire was very hot, I made the mistake of leaning over to drop in more trash and the blast of air rising from the barrel immediately singed hair and eyebrows. That was a mere wood fire, not a charcoal furnace -- an Iron Age furnace could be hot enough to consume those nearby when the top was opened.
Daniel 3:24-27, Four men, not three
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, O king."
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."
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, 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.
Somehow, despite the annihilation of the soldiers around them, the three Jews, falling into the furnace, are unharmed. Their constraints have been burned off, but not their clothes. And there seems to be a fourth person among them, one who has a supernatural appearance. Both Baldwin and Gleason interpret Nebuchadnezzar's statement, "like a son of the gods", as a mere pagan exclamation of a supernatural being in the furnace; it need not be a Messianic statement.
Daniel 3: 28-30, Lesson learned
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. 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."
Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the province of Babylon.
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