A whole crowd of officials heard the music and fell to the ground. Three men stayed on their feet, and everyone knew what the penalty was: the same hour into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.
Their answer to the king is one of the boldest sentences in the Bible, and it includes three words people still remember: But if not. What happened next left the most powerful king on earth staring into the fire, asking his counsellors to count again.
The Story of the Fiery Furnace
Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was threescore cubits and its breadth six cubits, and set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon. He gathered the princes, the governors, the captains, the judges, and all the rulers of the provinces to its dedication. Then a herald announced the command: when they heard the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, they were to fall down and worship the golden image, and whoso falleth not down and worshippeth shall the same hour be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.
The music played, and all the people fell down and worshipped. Then certain Chaldeans came near and accused the Jews. They named Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, men the king himself had set over the affairs of the province of Babylon: they serve not thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Nebuchadnezzar in his rage and fury had the three brought before him. He offered them one more chance to bow when the music played, and warned that otherwise they would be thrown into the furnace that same hour: and who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? They answered, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up.
Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed. He commanded that the furnace be heated one seven times more than it was wont to be heated, and he ordered the most mighty men in his army to bind the three and throw them in. They were bound in their coats, their hosen, their hats, and their other garments, and cast into the fire. Because the king’s commandment was urgent, and the furnace exceeding hot, the flame of the fire slew those men that took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego. The three fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.
Then Nebuchadnezzar was astonied and rose up in haste. Did not we cast three men bound into the midst of the fire? he asked his counsellors. True, O king, they said. The king answered, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.
Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the furnace and called, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, ye servants of the most high God, come forth. They came out of the midst of the fire. The princes, governors, captains, and the king’s counsellors gathered around and saw that the fire had no power on their bodies, nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them.
The king said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him. He made a decree that no people, nation, or language could speak anything amiss against their God, because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, in the province of Babylon.
Key Verses
“Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace” Daniel 3:17
“But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods” Daniel 3:18
“Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God” Daniel 3:25
“Nor was an hair of their head singed, neither were their coats changed, nor the smell of fire had passed on them” Daniel 3:27
“There is no other God that can deliver after this sort” Daniel 3:29
Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (KJV), a public-domain translation.
What the Story of the Fiery Furnace Teaches Us
The three men’s faith did not depend on the outcome. They were sure that our God whom we serve is able to deliver us, and they expected he would. But they settled their answer before they knew: But if not, they would still not serve the king’s gods. Their obedience did not hang on being rescued.
God did not keep them out of the furnace; he delivered them in it by sending his angel. They were bound and thrown in, and the flame was hot enough to kill the soldiers who carried them. Yet the king saw four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they came out with no hurt, not even the smell of fire on them.
The king who had asked, who is that God that shall deliver you out of my hands? ended up answering his own question. Nebuchadnezzar called them servants of the most high God and declared that there is no other God that can deliver after this sort. Three men who refused to bow became the reason a king blessed their God in front of his whole government.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who were the three men in the fiery furnace?
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego (Daniel 3:12). Daniel 1:7 gives their Hebrew names as Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.
Why were Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego thrown into the furnace?
They refused to fall down and worship the golden image that Nebuchadnezzar set up. Their answer was, we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up (Daniel 3:18).
Who was the fourth man in the fiery furnace?
Daniel 3:25 records the king saying, the form of the fourth is like the Son of God. In verse 28 Nebuchadnezzar says their God hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants. The chapter gives no other name.
How hot was the fiery furnace?
The king commanded that it be heated one seven times more than it was wont to be heated, and the flame of the fire slew the men who threw the three in (Daniel 3:19-22).
Were Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego burned?
No. Daniel 3:27 says the fire had no power on their bodies, not a hair of their head was singed, their coats were not changed, and the smell of fire had not passed on them.
Where is the fiery furnace story in the Bible?
It is in Daniel 3, during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.