Living in the Land of the Lost
Weekly Watch
They stood face-to-face with the most powerful man on earth — a man known for murderous impulses, and a man whose word was law. This may have been the most intimidating person in world history.
King Nebuchadnezzar spoke personally to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego — giving them one last chance to conform to his will or face fiery death. All they had to do was bow before a statue. They wouldn’t really have to mean it. Who would know the difference? The three of them, along with their friend Daniel (presumably away on the business of the kingdom), had miraculously risen to positions of great governmental power in a short time. How could it hurt to make a small compromise to preserve such power? Think of all the good they could do.
Conform, and they could keep their influence, prestige, and comfort. Then the king laid out the alternative. “But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” (Daniel 3:15, NKJV).
Then these young men gave one of the most remarkable answers in all the Bible. Daniel 3:1618 — “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.’”
I love the wording of the King James Version here. “O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter.”
They were not disrespectful. They didn’t call down curses on the king. But neither were they intimidated. King Nebuchadnezzar held great but finite power — while they served the God whose power has no limits. They had been exemplary in their service to the king, but their primary allegiance was to Almighty God. In fact, their citizenship in heaven made them better citizens of Babylon. It also meant they would not wilt in the face of evil. May we raise such children.
They declared God capable of delivering them from the furnace, but they did not say He would. They only said with certainty that God would deliver them from Nebuchadnezzar’s hand. That could mean rescue from the furnace, or deliverance through death. They didn’t know how God would do it, but they trusted Him no matter what. They put themselves in His hands. We live in a time when some preachers tell people never to pray, “Thy will be done” — even though that is exactly how Jesus taught us to pray.
You know the story. Soldiers died merely casting them into the furnace — but the Son of God kept Shadrach and his friends safe, even joining them in the fire.
The three young men were not “careful” in their answer. Philippians 4:6, again in the King James, says, “Be careful for nothing.” Other versions say, “Be anxious for nothing.” Do not be intimidated. Do not be afraid. You are not made safer by worry, nor are you made stronger by fear. Nehemiah 8:10 says, “The joy of the Lord is your strength.”
Prophetic signs increasingly point to the soon return of Jesus. As we move along the prophetic timeline, the furnace may change shape. But God’s answer never changes. I love the concise and profound wording of Philippians 4:6 in the New Living Translation. “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done.”
