Daniel

A couple questions seem to be repeated in the book of Daniel. 

• Whose god is Most High God?
  • The Babylonians would have said initially that their god was more powerful.  After all, Nebuchadnezzar had conquered all significant enemies and set up a kingdom with his gods at the helm.  The elements of worship from the temple in Jerusalem were in the Babylonian temple.

Whose story is history?

• Who set this world in motion?  Who sets the time, seasons; who raises kings, kingdoms and brings another to destroy them? 
• Isaiah said:

²⁸ Do you not know?

Have you not heard?

The Lord is the everlasting God,

the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary,

and his understanding no one can fathom.

²⁹ He gives strength to the weary

and increases the power of the weak.

³⁰ Even youths grow tired and weary,

and young men stumble and fall;

³¹ but those who hope in the Lord

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)

Daniel 3:1-3

What would make a king like Nebuchadnezzar erect a statue of himself ninety feet high and then demand all his officials fall down and worship it?  It may well be a sense of proud coming from the chapter 2 dream and revelation of its interpretation.  The Babylonian Chronicles were stone tablets recording Babylonian history.  These were created by the Chaldeans.  They record a coup attempt against Nebuchadnezzar.  This failed attempt was recorded as the event of the year.  It's possible, if not likely, that the king summoned his officials for this as a type of oath of loyalty.  This may also explain why Daniel is not a key player in this story.  He may have been in the king's court when this coup occurred.  If this is the motivation for the actions of this chapter then the separation between chapter 2 and 3 is approximately eight years. 

In spite of his previous humiliation, Nebuchadnezzar has this image erected on his behalf.  It is ninety feet high and nine feet wide.  A statue of this size wasn't unheard of in that day so there's no reason to doubt this.  The proportion is odd and seems extremely thin for the height.  We don't know if it was a statue of him, an emblem of some sort or statue of his god.  The most common of building materials was brick, so it is likely to have been built with brick and overlaid with gold. 

Dura was not a specific place, more of a specific setting; a plain surrounded by hills, mountains or other structures.  The location is unknown.  Nebuchadnezzar set this statue up and called for all his officials to show up at the dedication.   When they showed up they stood before the statue waiting further instruction.  As they looked around, they would realize this gathering was the 'who's who' of Babylon in attendance. 

Daniel 3:4-7

The herald was the press secretary for the king; he brought the news and official announcements from the throne.  All these leaders gathering around this statue must have listened intently to find out why they were there.  The sight of the statue must have been quite impressive and they would have known it was to honor the king, his stature or celebrate in some way.  At the sound of the musical instruments, they were to bow themselves prostrate before this statue. 

Some believe this indicates the statue was of a god rather than some likeness of Nebuchadnezzar.  However the king would bring the charge of high treason to those not bowing.  The king himself had fallen prostrate before Daniel and declared Yahweh the God of gods, Lord of kings and revealer of mystery (2:47).   Loyalty to the god of Babylon could not be the issue.  Nebuchadnezzar was concerned about loyalty to him.  Anyone not bowing would be thrown into a fiery furnace.  This was a horrifying death and used to strike fear in people and drive them to loyalty.  It had been used previously and possibly frequently (Jeremiah 29:22).

It appears there was no time to consider, to mull it over and think about the repercussions of this act.  At the sound of the instruments, all the nations and people aligned themselves with Nebuchadnezzar.  At their act of falling down, they placed themselves in submission to the king and declared their undying loyalty to him.  Consider:

• How many bowed without a thought?
• How many bowed simply because everyone else did?
• How many bowed out of fear of repercussions?
• How many truly bowed from loyalty?

We don't know the answers to these questions but we can probably safely say, not everyone present was that loyal.  Their commitment to preservation of life was a greater loyalty than anything else in their life.  This is normal and likely a default position for any of us; self preservation is inherent to our makeup.

Daniel 3:8-12

Ethnic tension existed between the Astrologers (Chaldeans) and the young Jewish men.  It appears they had forgotten that Daniel and his friends had saved their life.  They took their complaint to the king, essentially complaining they were held to a different standard.  It is quite possible they were implying the disloyalty was among the Jews.  They reported Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in a way that was almost a rebuke of the King's decision to trust them and put them in administrative positions.  These three young Jews, "pay no attention to you, Your Majesty!"  'Like we do,' he was implying.  They don't "serve your gods nor worship the image of gold."  'Like we do,' he was all but saying. 

The charge that they 'paid no attention to you' was a charging them of finding death more desirable than bowing before the idol.  Their commitment to God was above all else.  They would bow to no other.  The charge was true, they did not worship the idol nor the gods of the king. 

Daniel 3:13-15

Nebuchadnezzar was enraged at this.  How could anything be more important than loyalty to the king?  For him, this treason must be dealt with publicly, swiftly and harshly. People would know and see and this disloyalty could spread and be the downfall to his kingdom.  The words of Daniel in chapter 2 must have been ringing in his ears, "After you, another kingdom will arise" (2:39).  The king knew this had to be controlled.  

The Chaldeans, with their professional jealousy, must have been elated at this rage and subsequent action.  The young men were summoned to stand before the king and answer the charge.  The king informed them of the charge and was willing to forget it if they would go ahead and take advantage of the second chance.  It would, however, be the last chance.   Then, if they didn't bow, they would be thrown into the furnace.

The king then made a last chance offer.  How many would grab at this last chance like a life preserver?   Nearly all would look for God's intervention right then; if He were to save them it was time!  The closer they came to the furnace the harder it would be to be faithful and the easier to believe that no god could save them out of the furnace.  The king asked what God could do such a thing.  The rhetorical question sets the rescue as an impossibility and sets this up as an amazing miracle that only the God of the Jews could do.  It's along the same lines as, "There is no one on earth who can do what the king asks!" (2;10) as it pertains to telling the king his dream and offering the interpretation. 

Daniel 3:16-18

Why is Daniel not present?  There are several possibilities.  We can only speculate, and cannot know for sure.  We should at least explore the thought though.  It may be that Daniel was trusted beyond doubt or maybe he was at the kings side when the coup attempt occurred.  However, we know Daniel took the lead on taking a stand in chapter one.  The other young men seemed to follow.  The enemy may have thought to test these young men apart from Daniel, his intent to break their faithfulness and prove them weak and unworthy.  But the Lord allowed the test to provide them an opportunity to stand in his grace on their own, apart from Daniel. 

Regardless of Daniel's whereabouts, these three stand in faithfulness.  Their statement to the king  is like saying, "You aren't the boss of us!"  It sounds unnecessarily provocative, but in reality, they served the king and acknowledged him, but they acknowledged a higher authority.

There are at least three important facts regarding their decision:

1. They knew God was sovereign.
   • This fact had been established in their life.  They probably had known this for some time.  This may have been the first time they had to trust their lives to this fact.  All they saw with their eyes, all the worldly wisdom would say to grab for the second chance, compromise, survive to pray another day.
   • And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.  (Hebrews 11:6)
2. They knew the scriptures.
   • The scriptures were clear, they were not to bow before an idol or worship no other, either god or man.  To know God's word in our mind is one thing, but to put this knowledge in play in our life means His word has made its way to our heart.  It would have been so easily to say, 'I know what the word says, but God doesn't want me to die, so I'll compromise.'
   • "You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments." (Exodus 20:4-6)
3. They were willing to die for their convictions
   • The matter was already settled, they would not, could not, bow to this idol.  They knew God could save them; but whether he did or not didn't change the matter.  They knew they had to remain obedient.  They feared God more than they feared the king.
   • Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.  Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (Mat 10:28)

Daniel 3:19-23

There was probably an audible gasp from those nearby, no one talked to the king like this, and lived.  Nebuchadnezzar was enraged at these young men that he once looked on with favor. 

There were three things the king did to punctuate the miracle:

• • He commanded the furnace to be heated 7 times normal.  The command to heat the furnace to seven times normal was idiomatic for heating it to as hot as possible.  There were no thermostats or temp gauges.  They probably could judge the heat required for baking bricks, but the king wanted maximum heat for this job.  He wanted the suffering to be seven times normal 
  • He got the strongest soldiers of the army to tie them up.  Tying them up tighter than normal wasn't going to make any difference.  It was also highly unlikely they would attempt an escape or try fighting their way out.  This was much a message to others who might consider acting seditious.
  • The strongest soldiers threw them in the furnace.  Nebuchadnezzar's anger drove him to make poor decisions that cost him.  The sacrifice of the strongest soldiers seemed foolish and unnecessary.  The combination of his urgent anger with the heat from the fire cost these men their life.  The death of these men is certainly in contrast to the life of the four in the furnace.

Daniel 3:24-25

It was overwhelming emotional shock; a whiplash from anger to fear caused by being completely astonished by seeing something that isn't possible.  The king asks a crazy question, "weren't there three tied up and thrown in?"  Even if there were four, they wouldn't and couldn't be walking around.  Whether they were tied up or not is irrelevant.  They are in a furnace exceeding hundreds of degrees.  The contrast that confuses the king is that he is seeing four men, unbound and walking around.  There should be three going up in smoke as the king sits on the his throne to be observed as sovereign over his people and his land.

Daniel 3:26-27

Nebuchadnezzar calls to the young men, referring to them as 'servants of the Most High God.'  In doing so, he was no abandoning his own gods, but declaring the God of these young Jews was superior to his Gods, He was indeed the Most High God.  In seeing them unharmed in the fire, it was evident that they were servants, obedient and faithful.  It was in the fire that God was evident in their life to where others could see. 

The 'who's who' of the Babylonian kingdom just happened to be present.  They crowded around these young men.  They examined them and found them unharmed, still had their hair, clothes weren't scorched and the didn't smell like smoke.  The fire had no affect on them at all: 

• There was no smell of the king's judgment.
• They smelled like a pleasing sacrifice to the Lord their God.

 Daniel 3:28-30

Nebuchadnezzar now refers to the fourth person as an angel of the Lord.  'His angel' came to rescue 'His servants'.  The point of the passage is laid out; those who trust in Yahweh do not conform to any other religion, under any circucmstance.  He is God and there is no other; we are to serve without reservation, without limits.  This can mean several things:  

1. We may have to defy the king
   1. The started out wanting to burn them alive for defying him, now he praises them for doing so.
2. Faithfulness and obedience may cost you your life.
   1. To live is Christ, to die is gain (Phil 1:21)
   2. I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.  (Gal 2:20)
   3. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38)
   4. If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. (Romans 14:8)
3. Standing strong in our faith may allow the Lord to use you mightily.
   1. They had to enter the fire to have the testimony of not being burned.
   2. They had to be in the midst of judgment for their to be a miracle of not smelling like smoke.
   3. It was in the fire, God became visible in their life.
   4. The 'who's who' of Babylon all went home to their provinces with a story of faithfulness, of a miracle and of The Most High God.
4. Your faithfulness may have far-reaching effects.
   1. The king issued a decree that went to all the land that glorified God.
   2. The Babylonians thought the Jews were there in exile because their God was weak; now the king testifies that He is 'Most High God'.
   3. All the land heard that there is no one like our God and that there is no other god who can save in this way. 
5. You just might get a promotion.
   1. In the parable of the bags of gold, the lord said: Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!' (Matthew 25:23)

The three young men might have shouted all day about how amazing God is and how he is might to save.  They might have told hundreds of people.  But nothing they said could have resonated as loud as the word of the king upon observing their actions.  The king saw their master through their faithfulness.

What do others see in your actions?

©2018 Doug Ford