ellauri108.html on line 395: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in and out of the flames. (Where is man n:o 4?)
ellauri108.html on line 401: In chapter three in the Book of Daniel, we are introduced to three young men: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hold on to their belief in God even when threatened with a fiery death. Their story serves as inspiration for those who question their faith or who face hardship for their beliefs.
ellauri108.html on line 406: Once in captivity, the youths were given new names. Daniel was now called Belteshazzar, Hananiah was called Shadrach, Mishael was called Meshach, and Azariah was called Abednego.
ellauri108.html on line 408: These four Hebrew youths soon proved themselves to be exceptionally wise. As a result, they found favor with King Nebuchadnezzar. When Daniel turned out to be the only man capable of interpreting one of Nebuchadnezzar's troubling dreams, the king placed him in a high position over the whole province of Babylon, including over all of the wise men of the land. At Daniel's request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego as Daniel's advisors.
ellauri108.html on line 414: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, however, worshipped only the One True God, and they refused to bow down to the false idol. They were brought before Nebuchadnezzar to face their fate but remained courageous in the face of the king's demand to bow down before the golden statue. They said:
ellauri108.html on line 418: Furious, Nebuchadnezzar ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than average. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were bound and cast into the flames. The fiery blast was so hot it killed the soldiers who had escorted them.
ellauri108.html on line 423: Then the king called the men to come out of the furnace. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego emerged unharmed, with not even a hair on their heads singed or the smell of smoke on their clothing.
ellauri108.html on line 426: "Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who has sent his angel and delivered his servants, who trusted in him, and set aside the king's command, and yielded up their bodies rather than serve and worship any god except their own God." (Daniel 3:28, ESV)
ellauri108.html on line 428: Through God's miraculous deliverance of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego that day, Nebuchadnezzar declared that the remaining Israelites in captivity were now protected from harm and were guaranteed freedom of worship. And Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego received a royal promotion.
ellauri108.html on line 432: Who was the fourth man Nebuchadnezzar saw in the flames? Was it Daniel? Naah, he was out of it. Bible scholars believe he was either an angel or a manifestation of Christ. Regardless, his appearance was miraculous, a heavenly bodyguard sent by God to protect Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego during their intense time of need.
ellauri108.html on line 434: However, God's miraculous intervention in a moment of crisis is not promised. If it were, believers would not need to exercise faith. The lesson here is that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego trusted God and were determined to be faithful without any guarantee of deliverance. They had no assurance they would survive the flames, but they stood firm anyway.
ellauri248.html on line 242: Daniel in the lions' den (chapter 6 of the Book of Daniel) tells of how the biblical Daniel is saved from lions by the God of Israel "because I was found tasteless before them" (Daniel 6:22). It parallels and complements chapter 3, the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego: each begins with the jealousy of non-Jews towards successful Jews and an imperial edict requiring them to compromise their religion, and concludes with divine deliverance and a king who confesses the greatness of the God of the Jews and issues an edict of royal protection to the smug hookynoses. The tales making up chapters 1–6 of Daniel date no earlier than the Hellenistic period (3rd to 2nd century BC) and were probably originally independent, but were collected in the mid-2nd century BC and expanded shortly afterwards with the visions of the later chapters to produce the modern book.
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